I know, I know. It’s such an environmentalist cliche: save the trees! Save the rainforest! See, the thing is that it’s so true and so crucial that we do. If the rainforests die, we will soon after. We rely on earth’s trees and forests way more than we realize. Sure, we know that trees ‘help us breathe’, and they are good for the environment. The Amazon River Basin is the largest rainforest on earth, covers around 40 percent of South America and produces over 20 percent of the world’s oxygen (fittingly referred to as “The Lungs of the World”). Not to mention, rainforests house over 50 percent of earth’s biodiversity (on land).
The point is that rainforests are way more important than we give them credit for and support us more than we realize.
“A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people.”
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
Here’s the problem: if we continue to destroy the rainforests at the rate we are now, they will be completely gone within the next one hundred years.
In the time it takes to read this article, an area of Brazil's rain forest larger than 200 football fields will have been destroyed.
Rainforests are facing serious threats and we are supporting the destruction of the forests through the smallest aspects of our everyday lives, whether we realize it or not.
Here are the biggest threats to the rainforests, and what you can do to make a change and work to save the trees!
1. Reduce your use of palm oil.
Palm oil is a substance harvested from oil palms, and is used in over 50% of our household products. Oil palms need a rainforest climate, so rainforest land in Malaysia and Indonesia is being clear-cut in order to meet demand. Indonesia’s oil palm plantations cover nine million hectares (roughly the size of Maine) and 26 million hectares are projected to be clear-cut for oil palm plantations by 2025. Orangutans have become a symbol of rainforest conservation because they are some of the biggest victims of habitat loss, due to this rapidly increasing palm oil industry. Palm oil is found in everything from cleaning products to Nutella. Palm oil isn’t even remotely healthy! It’s around 80% saturated fat. Find out what household products you have that contain palm oil. It’s pretty hard to avoid it. The largest users of palm oil include Unilever, Nestlé, Procter & Gamble, and the Unilever Group. While organic palm oil is an option, it is not remotely realistic to meet the demand alone at which we are consuming palm oil today. Check out this (short) list of products containing palm oil, and decrease your consumption of these products! The health and wellbeing of the rainforest and rainforest communities depends on it!
2. Eat less meat.
With livestock covering 45% of earth’s land, it’s no wonder that we are running out of places to raise animals to meet the world’s demand for meat. A recent study by the Wageningen University Research Centre found that agriculture is estimated to be the direct driver for around 80% of deforestation worldwide. It totally makes sense though, when you consider:
- How much meat we eat
- How many animals we are raising to meet demand
- How much land those animals require
One cow requires 2-5 acres (that includes the land they live on and the land required to provide resources to raise them.) Countries, Brazil being a very large one, are aggressively deforesting land in order to provide grazing land to raise livestock cattle. A lot of that meat ends up here in the States.
“A new report from FAO says livestock production is one of the major causes of the world’s most pressing environmental problems, including global warming, land degradation, air and water pollution, and loss of biodiversity.” Animal agriculture is destroying the planet. Go veg for the earth!
3. Decrease your carbon footprint.
Decreasing your carbon footprint in your everyday life is so, so, so important! Even if it is just little things like using a reusable water bottle and refusing plastic or walking instead of driving every once in a while, it all adds up. That’s my motto: every little bit counts. Your ecological footprint is described as how much land and resources are required to sustain your lifestyle. Lots of things factor into your ecological footprint: your diet, transportation, housing, and even what sorts of consumer products you buy. Check out one of my recent articles, How Big is Your Ecological Footprint?: What are you doing to minimize yours? to learn more!
4. Support companies that are using natural resources sustainably and decrease your use of natural resources.
Support companies that are sourcing sustainably. The United States is the largest per-capita consumer of pulp and paper products in the world. Use less paper and natural resources, and recycle! Find companies that are sourcing paper and timber sustainably and are supporting local rainforest communities. Companies are (over)logging illegally in the rain forests and are completely destroying ecosystems and communities.
5. Spread the word.
Not a whole lot of people really grasp the danger that our earth’s rainforests are in. Especially here in the States, we aren’t exposed to that sort of natural environment. I personally contribute the depreciation of the forests here to not being exposed to them. Spread the word and educate your friends and family about the dangers of losing the rain forests, and the threats that they are facing.
I just want to emphasize one more time that you can make a difference. Every little bit counts, and every action you take is toward the greater good of saving the rainforests, therefore the planet. The rain forests are facing serious threats, and we are going to save them.The fate of the earth is in our hands, and we need to get it together and start acting like it.
