Why Trees Matter

It’s sad to see beautiful, majestic trees get cut down. Sometimes it’s for the benefit of the ecosystem. Sometimes it’s not.

Selective logging harvests trees that meet specific criteria and basic consumer demand. This can create greater biodiversity by making space available for other species and habitats to develop. Clearcutting chops all trees uniformly across many acres. This can lead to a degraded forest by severely modifying or permanently damaging its structure, function, biodiversity, and productivity. Sadly, it’s often driven by capitalism and human overconsumption.

How does this contribute to climate change? Undisturbed forests absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it in the soil. Deforestation not only eliminates that opportunity, but also opens up the soil to release all the stored carbon dioxide into the air. Forest degradation accounts for about 10% of all human-induced greenhouse gas emissions.