What measures can we take to save the forest covers?

Forests cover about one-third of the Earth's surface. Forests involve trees and encompass multitudes of animals, plants, and microorganisms. They are the habitat of most of the biodiversity on the planet. Moreover, forests affect the climate of the Earth and are the most significant source of oxygen present in our atmosphere. Forest cover, therefore, holds immense importance for our planet.

Forests help alleviate climate change, provide livelihoods, and play a considerable role in the hydrological cycle and in stabilizing soil. They are a significant source of vital medicines, sustainable food, and specialised agriculture. Unfortunately, we are losing this forest cover every year for a number of reasons. Indeed, we need to take serious measures to save the forest cover and biodiversity.

Conserve forest resources

Declaring forest lands as “protected” areas is a great strategy to adopt for saving the forest covers. This approach has, in recent years, had good results in conserving the species and protecting the forest covers from deforestation. The governance system should implement these measures in order to achieve biodiversity objectives. We should give the forest areas high-value priority to ensure sustenance.

There is a need to regulate and monitor the cutting down of trees. Practices like selective cutting and shelter-wood cutting should be adopted to conserve forest covers. Selective cutting involves finding and cutting mature trees. Whereas, in shelter cutting, the less valuable trees are cut down first, leaving the best quality timber to grow to maturity. This will help the surrounding environment.

Reforestation and Afforestation

Reforestation is the process of replanting trees in a forest area where the trees have already been cut down. In contrast, afforestation is selecting an area and planting the seeds to grow trees in an empty area. Afforestation is a long-term process, but it is a good way of saving and creating forest covers. It has proven to be very effective.

There are many benefits of reforestation and afforestation. For example, re-establishing or developing woodlands with various local species and working biological cycles can secure and advance the biodiversity of plants and creatures. Moreover, forests can benefit neighbourhood networks, providing wood for fuel, shelter, and medicinal treatments. Forest covers also improve the condition of the soil and reduce the chances of flooding.

Role of Government

Governments have a role to play in protecting and conserving the forest. National and provincial governments can take effective measures to tackle the issue. Governments can preserve specific forest areas. Moreover, it can pass acts to protect them legally. Taking care of our forests would be difficult without their involvement. We must, therefore, put more pressure on them to be more proactive.

Governments can help the forest cover in two ways.They can enforce policies and start public campaigns. Firstly, the government must create strict guidelines to show how serious it is about protecting the forests. After that, they need to develop awareness about climate change and deforestation. Additionally, it can initiate and implement campaigns to motivate people to conserve forests and plant trees.

Protecting the forest cover from fires

Loss of forest cover because of fire is becoming more common. Forest fires start very quickly and is very hard to control once they start. Over the last few years, we have experienced raging fires in US and Brazil's forests. It took weeks, if not months, to finally put them out. We must learn from this and adopt new firefighting techniques.

Consume less

The population around the world is rising sharply. This increase in demand for food and wood has expedited the depletion of the rainforests. Moreover, people waste a lot of resources and in general use more than they need Therefore, we need to educate people about the effects of their actions. This would be a good start in creating a sustainable economy.

Reduce our ecological footprint

We need to use sustainable products, avoid wasting resources and manage the needs of people in a more feasible way. Reducing our ecological footprint wound help save our forest covers. Moreover, we should recycle as many things as we can. Good education and awareness about the harmful effects of forest degradation are essential in our attempt to curb the forests' decimation.

Media can play a positive role in educating the people about conserving forest covers. It can tell people about the harmful effects of climate change and forest cover loss. Besides, governments must promote eco-friendly technologies. We should follow an environmental policy of 'reduce, reuse, recycle,' especially for forest products. Undoubtedly, this would reduce our ecological footprint, which has damaged forest covers.

Forest cover is a blessing and necessity for us

It is very important to protect the forest covers. This is because forest covers provide us with the oxygen, natural resources, and biodiversity we need. Forest covers have significant importance and directly impact the climate, atmosphere, and our lives. Every individual, government, and international organization has to unite and take joint actions. With collective measures, we can tackle the issues more efficiently.