Chapter 3, Problem 1CR

To determine

Three harmful effects of the clearing and degradation of tropical rain forests.

Answer to Problem 1CR

The degradation of tropical forests may lead to the extinction of many wildlife species, and an increase in the atmospheric carbon dioxide content eventually leading to global warming. Moreover, the regional weather can also be affected by clearing of the forests.

Explanation of Solution

The three adverse effects of the clearing and ruining of tropical rain forests are as follows:

1. i. The degradation of tropical forests causes loss of habitat of many animals and plants. This can increase the extinction rate of several species of animals and plants.
2. ii. The tropical rain forests help in controlling the carbon dioxide concentration of the Earth’s atmosphere, which in turn is helpful to reduce global warming. Therefore, clearing of those forests would cause an increase in the atmospheric carbon content and thus, initiates global warming.
3. iii. The rain pattern will also be affected by clearing the forests since forests maintain homogenous weather. Therefore, the local patterns of weather may be affected by the large-scale loss of tropical forests. In certain cases, those changes would restrict the regrowth of rain forests in the degraded areas and convert such regions into tropical grasslands.