As you realize that global warming IS REAL, opportunities and need both increase for rainforest conservation. Info has been out there for decades, but maybe the public eye has become so accustomed to the burning and clear-cutting pictures, it no longer really notices them.

Logging – much of it done illegally – is the most visible form of rainforest destruction.

Clear-cutting is usually the most profitable means of harvesting valuable timber, because the rainforest tends to be an “equal opportunity grower” with trees of high monetary value interspersed with what are seen as “junk” trees.

At least with logging, not everything is wasted, as happens when the forest is burned to clear it for pasture or other agriculture. Burning rainforests can be clearly seen from outer space, as this astronaut’s photo of Mexico shows – what looks like white dots are actually fires.

But even with careful deforestation – selective logging – the roads that are built for logging access wind up being used for human activities that are further damaging to delicate ecosystems.

Why You Should Share Rainforest Conservation Info

Rainforests are crucial to the ecosystem of our planet. They have been described as the Earth’s “lungs” or respiratory system. The massive numbers of trees and other plants absorb carbon dioxide (CO2), and then “breathe out” oxygen, which we need to survive.

We (humans and animals) breathe in the air around us, take in the oxygen, then throw off carbon dioxide as we exhale. This is a great arrangement, because everything balances out, if all is working as it should.

Unfortunately, the use of fossil fuels (carbon that has been stored underground for millennia, and is now being released) is dramatically increasing the world-wide levels of CO2. So just at the time we need all those trees in the rainforest the very most, we are destroying them through ignorance and greed.

Rainforests are also home to loads of wildlife and plant species, many of which have never even been documented. Many scientists believe the potential is huge for finding medical cures in these tropical regions.

As we destroy the forests, we also wipe out the indigenous cultures and people who have lived there for generations.

Find extensive rainforest conservation info at Mongabay.com

What Can You Do to Help Preserve the Rainforests?

It’s true that this a huge and terrible mess, but, short of going into the Amazon jungle and chaining yourself to a tree (not a really useful activity), there are many little things you can do to help save the rainforests.

Anything you accomplish that will prevent Global Warming will also help with rainforest conservation (info here).

You can buy a tree, or purchase the timber rights on an acre of rainforest.

And of course there are many great non-profit organizations who urgently need your contributions. You can even trigger a donation to save the rainforest by simply clicking the mouse on your computer.

Rainforest Conservation Info is a post from: Green Headquarters

Technorati Tags: Carbon Dioxide, clear cutting, Co2, deforestation, Delicate Ecosystems, Ecosystem, Fossil Fuels, global warming, Greed, rainforest conservation info, Selective Logging, Trees In The Rainforest

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

1) Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents. There are many styles available now to blend with your decor.

2) Turn your thermostat up in the summer, and down in the winter. You don’t have to get really radical, but you’ll probably be healthier, and you’ll save on your fuel bill.

3) Eat local and organic. Trucking your food back and forth across the country (or the world) makes absolutely no sense. Fresh produce tastes better, it’s more nutritious, it’s usually less expensive, and it supports your local economy.

4) Drive a fuel-efficient vehicle. The technology for electric and hybrid cars is already here, but if this isn’t an option for you, at least get make sure your car gets over 25 mpg.

5) Use public transportation, ride a bicycle, or walk instead of taking your car, when possible.

6) Use a clothesline to dry your clothes – weather permitting. You get exercise and that wonderful fresh smell!

7) Recycle, and buy goods that are made with recycled materials. Avoid disposables.

8 ) Replace older appliances with newer, more efficient ones.

9) Unplug (or use a power strip you can turn on and off) your electronics when you’re not using them. Phantom loads are a big waste.

10) Use renewable energy. Your electric company can switch you to Green Energy for a few extra cents per kilowatt.

BONUS ENTRY:
Plant something. In your yard, or even in your apartment, plants absorb and filter out harmful greenhouse gases.

For more ways to prevent global warming, visit the Union of Concerned Scientists website.

Still unsure how to start preventing Global Warming?
Check out this Global Warming Action Kit. It’s cool.

Prevent Global Warming and Help Save the World! is a post from: Green Headquarters

Technorati Tags: Bonus Entry, Clothesline, compact fluorescent, Compact Fluorescents, Disposables, Fresh Produce, Fuel Bill, Green Energy, Greenhouse Gases, Hybrid Cars, Incandescent Light Bulbs, Kilowatt, Phantom Loads, Power Strip, prevent global warming, preventing global warming, Public Transportation, Recycled Materials, reduce carbon dioxide, Renewable Energy, Thermostat, Union Of Concerned Scientists, Ways To Prevent Global Warming

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.