deforestation in Africa

Kierstin Lilly

9/29/10

6:00pm

The rate of deforestation in the “formerly tropical beautiful green zones of Africa” has been increasing because of the incentives to exploit forests. Deforestation is now being estimated at “2.6 million hectares annually, an area almost equivalent to Uganda.” Biodiversity, degradation of watersheds and desertification have been a result of the depletion of these forests and with the combination of deforestation and land degradation the problem of poverty in rural areas have sky rocketed. In the 1960’s the world’s forests accounted for 35 percent of the land where as today it has been reduced by almost 15 percent leaving the situation with the presumption that in the next 80 years there will be no forests left.

This article does a great job at pushing the problem at hand, right in the readers face. It tells you what the situation is right now as well as what will happen which is very a significant factor because most people do not realize the greatness of certain problems. The fact that the “land degradation exacerbates the problem of poverty in rural areas” is another huge issue in itself. Taking away the forests is basically taking away the peoples means of shelter, food, changing their climate conditions and several others things that are part of their means of living. When one situation is a problem for some it is also a solution to others. With the rise in population there is a higher demand for forest goods, which is a perfect example of helping one part of society and hurting another. Although “forests are a valuable environmental and economic resource for supporting natural systems and improving human welfare”, there has to be a balance between improving the welfare of some and destroying it for others.

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/459/732893