Manon+-+Deforestation

**Deforestation** -- Manon Rouanet --
 * Framing Question:**

//What are the motivations/causes behind deforestation, and do the profits of these motivations outweigh the negative effects?//

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o In Canada, over 90 percent of forests are publicly owned. However, much of this area is managed by a handful of companies. ======


 * Some Types of Timber:**

//Hemlock:// Soft wood, Light grey brown color, It has a slight sheen on its surface, Grown in USA/Canada, Uses - general joinery and structural work

//Western Red// //Cedar//: Large tree of up to 60m in height, Softwood, Native North Western Canada, Heartwood is very durable and the color varies from dark chocolate brown to salmon pink, Sapwood is also durable, is a pale light yellow color, almost white, It has a high acid content (eats nails), Light weight, strong odour, Easily machined, Very stable timber, Straight grain which turns silver after exposure to weather, Uses - roof shingles, louvers, joinery/furniture, doors, window sashes, external cladding

//American Red Oak:// As for White Oak, except the timber color has a "champagne" (pinkish) tint, The characteristics and uses are the same as White Oa

//American White Oak:// Medium size tree, 20-40m in height, Native to North America, Hardwood, Timber resembles English Oak, pale yellow brown to midbrown sometimes with a hint of pink, strength and quality varies due to widespread growing situations, has characteristics 'silver grain' figure due to broad medullar rays (quarter cut), very durable timer. When it dries it tends to split badly. (Uses: Interior finishing, vats and barrels, high class joiner and funiture, boat building.

//Black Walnut////:// Native of North America, Hardwood, Timber color is chocolate brown/purplish black


 * Eco regions in Canada:**



o Non-timber products (vines, bamboo, leaves, etc.) o Food (Honey, mushrooms, fruit, other edible plants, game.) o Genetic resources


 * Services Provided By the Forest:**

- Remove air pollutants, emits oxygen. (Process of photosynthesis)

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- Maintain array of watershed functions (infiltration, purification, flow control, soil stabilization.) ======

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- Moderate weather extremes and impacts (Global Warming weather impacts) ======

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- Generate soil (Composting of dead plants, animals, etc) ======

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- Provide for aesthetic enjoyment and recreation (Trails, hiking, sight seeing) ======


 * Pressures on Forests:**

- Conversion or fragmentation resulting from agricultural or urban uses

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- Deforestation resulting in loss of biodiversity, release of stored carbon, air and water pollution ======

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- Over extraction of water for agricultural, urban, and industrial uses ======


 * Causes:**

**Population Growth**
Graph of Canada's Estimated Population Growth (1861 - 2050):



Numbers
 * Years || Population (000s) ||
 * 1861 || 3,230 ||
 * 1871 || 3,689 ||
 * 1881 || 4,325 ||
 * 1891 || 4,833 ||
 * 1901 || 5,371 ||
 * 1911 || 7,207 ||
 * 1921 || 8,788 ||
 * 1931 || 10,377 ||
 * 1941 || 11,507 ||
 * 1951 || 13,648 ||
 * 1956 || 16,081 ||
 * 1961 || 18,238 ||
 * 1966 || 20,015 ||
 * 1971 || 21,568 ||
 * 1976 || 23,550 ||
 * 1981 || 24,820 ||
 * 1986 || 26,101 ||
 * 1991 || 28,031 ||
 * 1994 || 29,036 ||
 * 1995 || 29,353 ||
 * 1996 || 29,672 ||
 * 1997 || 30,011 ||
 * 1998 || 30,301 ||
 * 2001 || 31,050 ||
 * 2006 || 32,248 ||
 * 2011 || 33,369 ||
 * 2016 || 34,428 ||
 * 2021 || 35,393 ||
 * 2026 || 36,205 ||
 * 2050 || 42,311 ||

*Projected growth by UN

The population of Canada has been increasing steadily since 1867 Confederation but this growth is largely due to immigration and not natural causes.


 * Urban Growth/ Urbanization**

//Urban area -// An urban area is characterized by a higher population density (and population) then in the surrounding areas. //Urbanization -// Urban areas are created and developed by this process. //Urban// - in relating to, or characteristic of a city of town.


 * Measuring the extent of an urban area helps in analyzing population density and urban sprawl, and in determining urban and rural populations.

Urban Population Growth in Canada (1871 - 2006)



Numbers

(percentage of total) || *Projected growth by UNDP //Population growth// - The change in a population over a period of time, and can be expressed as the change in the number of individuals in a population using "per unit time" for measurement. Population growth is used for the more specific term population growth rate, and is refered specifically to the growth of the human population growth.
 * ** Year ** || ** Urban Populatio ** **n**
 * 1871 || 19.6 ||
 * 1881 || 25.7 ||
 * 1891 || 31.8 ||
 * 1901 || 37.5 ||
 * 1911 || 45.4 ||
 * 1921 || 49.5 ||
 * 1931 || 52.7 ||
 * 1941 || 54.5 ||
 * 1951 || 62.9 ||
 * 1956 || 66.6 ||
 * 1961 || 69.6 ||
 * 1966 || 73.6 ||
 * 1971 || 76.1 ||
 * 1976 || 75.5 ||
 * 1980 || 76 ||
 * 1981 || 75.7 ||
 * 1986 || 76.5 ||
 * 1991 || 76.6 ||
 * 1994 || 77 ||
 * 1995 || 77 ||
 * 1996 || 77.9 ||
 * 1997 || 77 ||
 * 1998 || 77 ||
 * // 1999 // || //no information// ||
 * 2000 || 77 ||
 * 2015 || 79.8 ||
 * 2025 || 82 ||

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- Government subsidies for timber extraction and logging roads ======

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- Inadequate valuation of costs of industrial air pollution ======

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">- Poverty and insecure tenure

 * __Talking about Deforestation__

What is it?**

1. To clear an area of trees/forest. 2. Deforestation involves the permanent destruction of a woodland area or indigenous forest. 3. Does not apply to the removal of trees from plantations or industrial forests.


 * History**

Humans have always cut down trees. Wood has historically been the most used form of heating fuel, as well as one of the most common building materials for houses and ships and other forms of transportation.


 * Importance of Forests**

Forests are largely important in our way of life. Their preservation is a fundamental necessity, not only so that future generations can enjoy them, but also because the forests serve for may economic and ecological purposes. For example, the provide a fantastic habit for species everywhere, the tropical rain forest only covers 7% of the Earth's surface but it shelters more than half of all the species in the world. Forests also produce a great deal of oxygen, which is necessary for the human population to survive and it helps prevent the excessive climb of global warming. Forests help replenish nutrients in the ground which prevents desertification*. Economically, we rely on forests as a source of timber. If our supply is exhausted we will no longer have materials, a prominent source of fuel and paper.

media type="youtube" key="qzK2XITThZM" height="385" width="480"
 * //desertification// - The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture.

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times,serif;">Logging is the main threat to old growth forests found in the northwestern United States. Much of this forest land is managed by the United States Forest Service with the intention that they be used in the combination that will best meet the needs of the American people and not necessarily the combination of uses that will give the greatest dollar return.
 * Logging**

The Forest Service is obviously heavily influenced by the timber industry, as it actually subsidizes timber companies to the extent of $500 million per year in taxpayers’ money. This makes paper and wood cheaper than they should be, and makes it more difficult for the recycled paper industry to succeed. The forest service apparently does this in order to create jobs within the timber industry. (Bryant)

Logging is also a major problem in other countries. In Brazil, for example, the construction of the Transamazonian Highway in the 1970's opened up large areas of forest both for logging and for agricultural purposes. It's estimated that the Brazilian state of Rondonia has lost 20% of its forest through burning. **<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times,serif;">

Types of Logging**<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times,serif;">

Tree-length logging
Tree-length Trees are felled and then delimbed* and topped at the stump. The log is then transported to the landing, where it is bucket and loaded on a truck. This leaves the slash (and the nutrients it contains) in the cut area where it must be further treated if wildfires are an issue.

Trees and plants are cut and transported to the roadside with top and limbs intact. The trees are then delimbed, topped, and bucked at the landing. This method requires that slash be treated at the landing. In areas with access to cogeneration* facilities (the generation of electricity and other sources of energy jointedly*), the slash can be chipped and used for the production of clean electricity or heat. Full-tree harvesting also refers to use the of the entire tree including branches and tops. (This technique removes both nutrients and soil cover from the site and so can be harmful to the long term health of the area if no further action is taken, however, *depending on the species* many of the branches are broken off in the process so it becomes similar to tree-length logging)
 * Full Tree Logging**

Cut-to-length logging is the process of cutting, delimbing, bucking and sorting (pulpwood, sawlog, etc.) at the stump area, leaving the branches and tops in the forest. Harvesters fell the tree, delimb and 'buck' it, and place the resulting logs in bunks to be brought to the landing by a skidder or forwarder. This method is usable for smaller timber on ground flat enough that forwarders can operate, but does not work well on steep slopes.
 * Cut-to-length Logging**

The felling, at intervals, of the mature trees in a forest of mixed age. This type of forest management mimics natural processes in that the canopy is maintained while timber is produced. This is a complicated and dangerous process that has minimal effect on the forest.
 * Selective Logging**

This process basically involves cutting down virtually every tree standing over a specific area of forest.
 * Clear Cutting**

**Topping - To cut the top of the delimbed tree
 * //*Delimb -// To remove all the branches.

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times,serif;"> **Habitat Fragmentation**

Habitat Fragmentation is another aspect of logging. Certain species the live in a forest usually depend on a nearby grassland/wetland for food, or vice versa. If a logging company arrives, they usually build a road through the center of the forest to make the performance of their logging operations around that road easier. If the roads used often or become commonly used by others, they become a barrier for the wildlife with the noise, pollution and roadkill. If even a small area of the forest is cleared, a large area will lose access to essential habitats nearby and a food source.


 * Slash and Burn Agriculture (World Application)** [[image:http://www.mongabay.com/images/indonesia/kalimantan/kali9753.JPG width="360" height="240" align="right"]]

Many developing nations practice a technique called 'slash and burn': This form of logging's purpose is to take advantage of nutrients stored in the forest's ground to grow their crops for themselves and families and to make a profit. The forest areas in these countries are most often tropical forests, and in tropical forests most of the nutrients are stored in the planet matter itself. The land is sustainable when the population density is less then 12 people per square mile. The land is then uses for 2-3 years and then left to fallow*

But, the population these days are more than 3 times that. (36 / square mile) and the land gets use a lot more. So if wears out much faster, it still needs to fallow. So more often new land is needed to plant crops. This land is obtained by slashing and burning down new forest areas.

*fallow - plowed and harrowed but left left unsown for a period in order to restore its fertility as part of a crop rotation or to avoid a surplus production.


 * Cattle Raising** [[image:http://www.mccullagh.org/db9/1ds-13/cattle-ranch-sierra-nevada-mountains.jpg width="380" height="249" align="right"]]

This is one of the main reasons/provocation for deforestation (especially in South America). Forest are entirely cleared and used as grazing land for animals for 6-10 years before being left for scrub growth. The cost of cattle raising is cheaper in South America, allows for cheaper meat products. Population and Economic pressures make farmers clear more desirable land. The result is large scale corporate/commercial farming where there is a bottom line rather than a concern for the environment.

(add more)


 * Commercial Farming**

The production of crops for sale, crops intended for widespread distribution to wholesalers or retail outlets (e.g. supermarkets). In commercial farming wheat, maize, tea, coffee, sugarcane, cashew, rubber, banana, cotton are harvested. Commercial agriculture includes livestock production and livestock grazing. Commercial agriculture does not include crops grown for household consumption (e.g. backyard garden or from a vegetable garden or a few fruit trees.)

(ex. Large scale farming to produce for the population) (add more)


 * Fuel Wood**

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<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Used as fuel. The burning of wood is currently the largest use of energy derived from a solid fuel biomass. Wood fuel used for cooking and heating, fueling steam engines and steam turbines that generate electricity. Wood fuel may be available as firewood, charcoal, chips, sheets, pellets and sawdust. The particular form used depends upon factors such as source, quantity, quality and application. Sawmill waste and construction industry by-product also include various forms of lumber tailings. ======


 * Paper Production**

25% of the world's lumber harvest now goes towards paper production.

Kraft Pulping, Sulphate, or Chemical pulping is a process that uses sulphur to get the fiber of the trees. (This is why the odour released from mills usually smells like rotten eggs.)
 * Kraft Pulping**

//Pros:// The Chemicals used in the process can be recycled and re-used in the mill, also the fibers created are very strong (kraft meaning strong in German). //Cons:// This process uses 50% or less of the tree where the rest becomes 'sludge' that is burned, spread on land or dumped in a landfill.

Magazines, printing and graphics papers, grocery bags, packaging use products made of kraft pulp. This pulp is dark and commonly bleached.

Mechanical pulping mills physically shred/tear apart the trees into pulp with grind stones and/or heat.
 * Mechanical Pulping**

//Pros:// This process uses approximately 90% of the tree. //Cons:// The pulp has weaker fibres, and discolours over time, it also uses a lot of energy and water to run.

Commonly used for newspapers and often bleached.

media type="youtube" key="JbAQ76OKmLo" height="385" width="480"


 * General Effects:**

After forests are cleared, the soil that was underneath the trees is exposed to the sun. It becomes very dry, and after a while infertile (because nutrients like nitrogen is being lost). And then, when it rains that washes away the rest of the nutrients. Soil continues to erode even if trees are replanted, because by the time the trees have grown and matured, the soil would have lost most or all of its nutrients//**.**// Huge spaces of land have and can be rendered useless due to soil erosion.
 * Soil Erosion -**

Trees play a large part in the water cycle, for they absorb water through their roots and release it into the air. In the rain forest, water has a tendency to remain inside the trees. When the trees are cut down the atmosphere technically becomes drier.
 * Disruption of the Water Cycle -**

Biodiversity is suffering in many areas, and is being lost on a large scale. Rainforests shelter 80% - 90% of the world's species, though rain forests only cover 6% of the surface of the Earth. Due to deforestation, 50 - 100 species of animals are lost every single day. This results in a massive scale of extinction.
 * Loss of Biodiversity -**

Forests have the ability to absorb and store huge amounts of water, specifically when there are heavy rains. Once the forest is cut down, this ability is interupted and the affected area alternates between periods of flooding and drought.
 * Flooding and Drought -**

Trees act as a major storage space for carbon (and carbon dioxide) they absorb from the atmosphere, which provide nutrients for the trees. When the forest is cut, many trees are burnt or they are allowed to rot. The carbon that is held in the wood is released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide which contributes to global warming.
 * Climate Change -**

NUMBER FACTS:

20 Shocking Facts on the Environment | Green Expander. (n.d.). //Green Expander - Save the planet//. Retrieved April 18, 2010, from http://www.greenexpander.com/2007/10/30/20-shocking-facts-on-the-environment/

- Every ton of recycled office paper saves 380 gallons of oil. - 50 million tons of paper are consumed annually by Americans, more than 850 million trees being cut down. - More than half of the world’s tropical forests have been lost. - Each year, over 63,000 square miles of tropical forest are destroyed. - Rainforests have taken thousands of years to form but every second a portion the size of a football field is destroyed.

Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. (n.d.). //Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web//. Retrieved April 18, 2010, from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/facts-aorestation.html

- In Nigeria 81% of its original forest cover is now permanently lost. - More than 12 million hectares of forest land is lost to urbanization or allied activities each year

The Nature Conservancy. (n.d.). //Nature//. Retrieved April 18, 2010, from http://www.nature.org/rainforests/explore/facts.html

- A typical four square mile patch of rainforest contains as many as 1,500 flowering plants, 750 species of trees, 400 species of birds and 150 species of butterflies. - Seventy percent of the plants identified by the U.S. National Cancer Institute as useful in the treatment of cancer are found only in rainforests. - Less than one percent of the tropical rainforest species have been analyzed for their medicinal value. - Originally, 6 million square miles of tropical rainforest existed worldwide. But as a result of deforestation, only 2.6 million square miles remain. - At the current rate of tropical forest loss, 5-10 percent of tropical rainforest species will be lost per decade. - Every second, a slice of rainforest the size of a football field is mowed down. That's 86,400 football fields of rainforest per day, or over 31 million football fields of rainforest each year.

- The shade and wind buffering provided by trees reduces annual heating and cooling costs by 2.1 billion dollars. - A single tree produces approximately 260 pounds of oxygen per year. That means two mature trees can supply enough oxygen annually to support a family of four! - Over the course its life, a single tree can absorb one ton of carbon dioxide.

List of countries by carbon dioxide emissions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). //Main Page - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. Retrieved April 18, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_carbon

544,680 annual CO2 emissions (in thousand of metric tons) 1.9 % of the global total 16.72 metric ton per capita 73.7 % reduction needed to reach world per capita average
 * Canada's Average:**

(http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/campaigns/boreal/frequently-asked-questions#5)

What is cut?

290,000 hectares of forest in Quebec, 185,000 hectares in Ontario and 67,000 hectares of forest in Alberta every year.

How old are the trees?

Canada's boreal forest is over 10,000 years old (one of the last remaining ancient forests in the world)

Statistical data - Canada's Forests. (n.d.). //Canada's Forests//. Retrieved April 18, 2010, from http://canadaforests.nrcan.gc.ca/statsprofile/summary/sof


 * Area defoliated by insects and beetle-killed trees (hectares) (2007) || 18 599 523 ||
 * Area planted (hectares) (2007) || 451 318 ||
 * Area seeded (hectares) (2007) || 34 429 ||
 * Fire – area burned (hectares) (2008) || 1 701 377 ||
 * Fires – number (number) (2008) || 6 036 ||
 * Forest area certified (hectares) (2008) || 145 748 861 ||
 * Harvest (area) (hectares) (2007) || 733 760 ||
 * Harvest (volume) (cubic metres) (2007) || 162 792 00 ||


 * CO2e emissions due to deforestation (megatonnes) (2007) || 16.0 ||
 * CO2e removals from the atmosphere due to afforestation (megatonnes) (2007) || -1.0 ||
 * Deforestation – forest area (kilohectares) (2007) || 47.8 ||


 * Direct jobs (LFS) || 273 700 ||
 * Direct jobs (SEPH) || 231 451 ||


 * Sources**

Global Forest Watch. (n.d.). //Global Forest Watch: Powerpoints//. Retrieved March 22, 2010, from http://powerpoints.wri.org/gfw_2000/sld017.htm

Wood Fuel. (n.d.). //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. Retrieved March 22, 2010, from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_fuel

Interior Design and Decorating. (n.d.). //Interior Design, Interior Decorating Ideas, Interior Design Decoration Free Downloads//. Retrieved March 22, 2010, from http://www.interiordezine.com/index.cfm/Interior_Design_Finishes/Types_of_Timber_Wood

Deforestation -- Introduction. (n.d.). //Darwin Website Index//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://darwin.bio.uci.edu/~sustain/issueguides/TimberCert/deforest/index.html

Commercial agriculture - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commercial_agriculture

Selective logging: Definition from Answers.com. (n.d.). //Answers.com: Wiki Q&A combined with free online dictionary, thesaurus, and encyclopedias//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://www.answers.com/topic/selective-logging

Urban area: Definition from Answers.com. (n.d.). //Answers.com: Wiki Q&A combined with free online dictionary, thesaurus, and encyclopedias//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://www.answers.com/topic/urban-area

Canada's Urbanization. (n.d.). //The Sustainability Report//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://www.sustreport.org/signals/canpop_urb.html

Pulp and Paper Production Basics. (n.d.). //Welcome to Reach for Unbleached//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://www.rfu.org/cacw/basic.html

WWF - WWF-Canon Photogallery. (n.d.). //WWF - WWF//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://www.panda.org/wwf_news/multimedia/photogallery/gallery.cfm?uGalleryID=660&uImageID=923

Canadian Demographics at a Glance: Population growth in Canada. (n.d.). //Statistics Canada: Canada's national statistical agency / Statistique Canada : Organisme statistique national du Canada//. Retrieved March 28, 2010, from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/91-003-x/2007001/4129907-eng.htm

Putatunda, R. (n.d.). Causes and Effects of Deforestation. //Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web//. Retrieved April 12, 2010, from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/causes-and-effects-of-deforestation.html