The human race has harmed the very planet that they live on, through their activities, since the very start of civilization. Using the resources provided by nature to fulfill the needs of the human beings is not something that is the cause of concern, but the indirect intent of incriminating damage to the environment is what the main source of concern is. Some of the impacts of human activity involve the disruption of carbon cycle, the disruption of hydro (water) cycle, and the reduction of species diversity. The major impacts of human activity on the carbon cycle include the burning of fossil fuels and the changes in the land infrastructure such as deforestation. Human beings have disrupted the carbon cycle by their activities, especially by the removal of forests. Similarly, the water cycle has also been affected through deforestation, because trees are the major contributors in the maintenance of the water cycle and the human beings have been cutting down forests to fulfill their needs since long. Deforestation also causes another disruptive phenomenon, i.e. the reduction in species diversity. The cutting down of forests eliminates the natural habitat for a large number of species eventually resulting in the reduction of the number of species through extinction.
Evaluating the effects of human activity on the carbon cycle, it may be said that humans have done enough to alter the natural carbon cycle in an adverse way. The natural release of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels is a slow process and occurs through volcanic activity. However, human beings have speeded up the process by using fossil fuels as means of energy. The use of fossil fuels in industry and domestic purposes causes the carbon dioxide to be released into the atmosphere much more rapidly than the natural pace. The second most disturbing effect of human activity is through deforestation. The reduction of trees reduces the capacity of absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, since trees use carbon for respiration and photosynthesis. Additionally, plants are large reservoirs of carbon. When plants are cut down, the replacement of plants with other things such as concrete decrease the amount of carbon storage, as concrete has very low capacity of carbon storage as compared to plants. Thus, deforestation impacts the carbon cycle adversely.
Apart from the carbon cycle, it is also necessary to appraise the effects of human activity on the hydro cycle or the water cycle. The process of deforestation also affects the water cycle harmfully. Trees are known to be major contributors to the maintenance of the water cycle. Trees draw water, with the help of their roots, to help them in their processes and then the water is released into the atmosphere. At the same time, plants also hold up a large amount of water. This helps in maintaining the underground water level in the surrounding areas. When trees, or forests, are cut down; this phenomenon is largely disturbed and the underground water starts to dry up and eventually depletes. It may be said that trees help in maintaining water in the surroundings. This disrupts the water cycle and the end result is that the water resources start to dwindle.
Reduction in the diversity of species is also one of the major impacts of human activity on the environment. Although other human activity is also harmful to the different species and contributes to the reduction in species diversity, deforestation is one of the most harmful phenomenon that impacts the species diversity. Since the forests are home to innumerable species around the world, the cutting down of such forests obviously affects them adversely. It is as if these species are stripped off their homes and they no longer have the habitat that they used for all of their lives. Although the species may initially adjust to varying environments and habitats, they gradually start to lower in numbers and eventually become extinct, all thanks to the human tendency for deforestation. The loss of species, especially some of them, affects human life severely. For instance, the loss of commercially used fish. Although the example of fish doesn’t seem appropriate when the concern is deforestation, it should, however, serve the purpose of diverting human attention to the need of reducing the loss of species diversity.
There is no need to mention the pain that the environment, and eventually humanity, has to bare due to such actions as deforestation. Deforestation disrupts the carbon cycle, the water cycle, and is the cause for the reduction in the diversity of species. The overall impact of deforestation is huge and is incalculable. Keeping all of this in mind, we should look at our activities through the spectacles of an environmentalist and it is high time that we started to care about our environment. Deforestation may be reduced, if not eliminated, by reappraising our use of the products made of wood. We need to ask ourselves the question whether we will be able to survive if we do not use stuff made out of wood. The obvious answer is yes, we can survive if we eliminate, or at least reduce, the use of wood. We should consider alternatives that involve replacing wood with other materials wherever possible. The resources of forests are dwindling at a fast rate and the environmental impact is enormous and we need to act quickly in order to come out with strategies that mitigate this impact and implement them as soon as possible.
References
Ceballos, G., Ehrlich, P. R., Barnosky, A. D., García, A., Pringle, R. M., & Palmer, T. M. (2015). Accelerated modern human–induced species losses: Entering the sixth mass extinction. Science Advances, 1(5).
Lagon, M. P. (2011). Promoting Democracy: The Whys and Hows for the United States and the International Community. Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved from http://www.cfr.org/democratization/promoting-democracy-whys-hows-united-states-international-community/p24090
