The Importance of Tropical Rainforests
It is very important that tropical rainforests exist. There are many reasons supporting this opinion such as the fact that about 1/4 of all the medicines we use come from tropical rainforest plants. Tropical rainforests are believed to be the oldest most complex land-based ecosystems Earth containing over 30 million species of plants and animals. That's half of Earth's wildlife and at leased two-thirds of its plant species! There are also thousands of plant and animals species still waiting to be discovered. These plants provide food and shelter for all of the rare animals that depend on the rainforest for their survival.
Rainforests are globally important becasue they regulate Earth's climate. Tropical rainforests act as a giant sponge and are believed to store over half of Earth's rainwater! Rainforest trees draw water from the forest floor and release it back in to the atmosphere in the form of swirling mists and clouds. Without rainforests continually recycling huge quantities of water, feeding the rivers, lakes and irrigation systems, droughts would become more common, potentially leading to widespread famine and disease. Did you know that we also depend on trees to cleanse our atmosphere? They absorb the carbon dioxide that we exhale, and provide the oxygen we need to breathe.
Surprisingly, soil in the rainforest is very poor in nutrients. This is because when a tree dies and its trunk falls to the forest floor, it decays and the nutrients it contains are recycled. However, if trees are removed from the forest, the nutrients are removed with it, along with the protection provided by the tree roots and the forest canopy. The unprotected soil is then simply washed away in heavy rains, causing blockages and floods in lowland rivers, while leaving upland rivers dry.
Many indigenous people have been living in harmony with the rainforest for thousands of years, depending on it for their food, shelter and medicines.
Many foods we consume today such as nuts, bananas, coffee and spices, and industrial products such as rubber, resins and fibres, were originally found in tropical rainforests.
Rainforests are globally important becasue they regulate Earth's climate. Tropical rainforests act as a giant sponge and are believed to store over half of Earth's rainwater! Rainforest trees draw water from the forest floor and release it back in to the atmosphere in the form of swirling mists and clouds. Without rainforests continually recycling huge quantities of water, feeding the rivers, lakes and irrigation systems, droughts would become more common, potentially leading to widespread famine and disease. Did you know that we also depend on trees to cleanse our atmosphere? They absorb the carbon dioxide that we exhale, and provide the oxygen we need to breathe.
Surprisingly, soil in the rainforest is very poor in nutrients. This is because when a tree dies and its trunk falls to the forest floor, it decays and the nutrients it contains are recycled. However, if trees are removed from the forest, the nutrients are removed with it, along with the protection provided by the tree roots and the forest canopy. The unprotected soil is then simply washed away in heavy rains, causing blockages and floods in lowland rivers, while leaving upland rivers dry.
Many indigenous people have been living in harmony with the rainforest for thousands of years, depending on it for their food, shelter and medicines.
Many foods we consume today such as nuts, bananas, coffee and spices, and industrial products such as rubber, resins and fibres, were originally found in tropical rainforests.