Dudeck 1

Kimberly Dudeck
Professor E. Witt
Physical Geography
6 December 2015
Deforestation in Central America
Tropical rainforests contain some of the most diverse species of
plants and animals than any other ecosystem on the planet. Aside from
their biodiversity, rainforests also play a critical role in our everyday
lives. They are commonly known as the lungs of the planet because
of their ability to absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen and water
vapor. Not only do they allow us to breathe, but also help to stabilize
the worlds climate, maintain the water cycle, prevent ocean
acidification, and house a variety of foods and natural medicines.
Today, more than half of the worlds tropical rainforests have fallen
victim to economic globalization. Over the course of the 20th century,
the tropical forests of Central America have been destroyed much
more promptly than those of any other world region, consistent with
David Carr (Carr, 2005). This tremendous loss has greatly impacted the
Earth, and has further added to the issue of climate change.
The effects of global warming are causing rising temperatures
and drastic changes in climate patterns. During the second half of the
19th century, the global average surface temperature is estimated to
have risen 1.5 F above average (Mastrandrea, MD et al., 2008). Large,

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and potentially dangerous, shifts in climate and weather may result
from these minute temperature changes. This includes changes in
precipitation, ensuing more floods and droughts, as well severe heat
waves becoming more common. There have also been noticeable
changes in the planets oceans and glaciers. The oceans are becoming
warmer, and a dramatic increase in carbon dioxide levels have resulted
in lower pH values, meaning the water is now more acidic than ever. It
is also becoming apparent that sea levels are rising due to melting ice
caps in the Arctic. During the 20th century, it was observed that the
global mean sea level is rising 1.5- to 2-millimeters per year (Milly, PCD
et al., 2003). According to Mark Dyurgerov, the mid 1970s
experienced a rapid loss of ice volume followed by further acceleration
in the last decade. At the time of his study, the annual average volume
loss of ice was 147 millimeters per year (Dyurgerov, MB et al., 2000).
In the coming decades, our society and environment will be faced with
many challenges as these changes become more evident.
Humans are largely responsible for the recent alterations in
climate. Over the past century, human activities have caused large
amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to be released
into the atmosphere. Some of these other gases include methane,
nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons. The burning of fossil fuels to
produce energy is where a majority of these greenhouse gases come
from. Gases are also emitted into the atmosphere through

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deforestation, industrial processes, and some agricultural practices.
Consistent with Michael Mastrandrea, the natural greenhouse effect
makes our planet much more habitable, about 33 C warmer, than it
otherwise would be. Intensifying the greenhouse effect traps extra heat
and warms the surface further, resulting in abnormal increases in
temperature (Mastrandrea, MD et al., 2008). The choices society
makes today will affect the amount of greenhouse gases released into
the atmosphere for years to come.
The continuous increase of greenhouse gas emissions released
into the atmosphere will eventually lead to further climate changes on
our planet. Some of these future changes are projected to include
increases in Earths average temperature, reduced ice and snow cover,
increases in the intensity, frequency, and duration of extreme events,
and shifts in the characteristics of the ecosystem. Michael Mastrandrea
suggests that a heavy reliance on fossil fuels will drive emissions to
increase significantly during this century. He projects further global
average surface warming of 2.4- 6.4 C by the year 2100 (Mastrandrea,
MD et al., 2008). These changes will greatly impact our water
resources, food supply, ecosystems, and the overall health of humans.
Of all the environmental issues the world is facing today,
deforestation in Central America is by far the greatest threat.
Deforestation involves cutting down rainforests for the needs and
wants of the global population. The largest direct cause of tropical

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deforestation is a result of converting areas into pastures and
croplands, mainly for raising livestock and growing food. Other reasons
include road construction, wood harvesting, agricultural expansion,
extracting the pulp from trees in order to make paper, and unearthing
energy and minerals, to name a few. Deforestation is going to greatly
impact biodiversity and soil, as a whole. There will be a significant
decrease in biodiversity due to the destruction of natural habitats,
which are home to many species of plants, animals, and birds. Without
the protection of these forests, soil erosion will increase and soil quality
will become much more poor, as well. No matter the consequences,
deforestation will always have a negative impact on the environment.
World forests may be considered one giant carbon sink. They
avoid immediate release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere by
storing it and locking it away. When a tree dies, it decomposes, and the
carbon that has been stored over its lifetime is released back into the
atmosphere. This process is accelerated in trees that are prematurely
cut down. As said by G. Bala and colleagues, deforestation affects the
global climate both by releasing the carbon stored in the plants and
soils, and by altering the physical properties of the planetary surface.
Adding CO2 to the atmosphere through deforestation exerts a warming
influence on the planet, and reduces evapotranspiration in the tropics
(Bala, G et al., 2007). The Earths albedo, or reflectivity, is also
affected by deforestation. Consistent with Michael Mastrandrea,

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decreasing the surface albedo through the removal of evapotranspiring vegetation reduces evaporative cooling rates, in seasonally
snow-covered areas, which exerts an overall cooling influence on the
atmosphere (Mastrandrea, MD et al., 2008). In general, the release of
CO2 through deforestation is not new information to the global
population.
People have been participating in deforestation efforts for
thousands of years. During the Industrial Revolution, huge chunks of
forests were cut down in order to make room for developing areas. The
favored technique of deforesting was burning trees and clear cutting,
commonly known as slash-and-burn. This method destroys trees
without efficiently using them, and strips the soil of its nutrients so
vegetation is unable to grow. Slash-and-burn techniques release large
amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere, including the carbon that was
stored in the trees, which creates an overall warming affect worldwide.
We have experienced a tremendous increase in deforestation over the
past decade. For example, the Sierra Santa Marta area of Southern
Mexico has lost more than 95% of its original rainforest cover,
according to Leticia Durand (Durand, L et al., 2004). Climate records
from the past support this evidence. Historical records may be
retrieved from tree rings, pollen records, and ice cores from around the
world. This evidence allows scientists to compare current changes with
past naturally induced ones. According to M. Mastrandrea, tree rings

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and pollen rates taken from lake beds indicate that current
temperatures are the warmest of the millennium, and that the rate and
magnitude of warming over the past 150 years are greater than any
previous changes during this period (Mastrandrea, MD et al., 2008). Ice
cores taken from Antarctica and Greenland may also provide
temperature and atmospheric gas estimates, predominantly carbon
dioxide and methane, from hundreds to thousands of years ago. These
ice cores indicate that current levels of CO2 and other greenhouse
gases in the atmosphere are far above any seen in the past 650,000
years, as said by Mastrandrea (Mastrandrea, MD et al., 2008). The
main purpose of this paper is to inform the public about the
consequences of deforestation, and how it is killing the planet.
Over the past several decades, deforestation rates in Central
America have noticeably increased due to an expansion in population,
and a higher demand of export crops from other countries. For
example, the United States demand for beef imports caused the
clearing of two-thirds of the primary forests of Central America,
according to Norman Myers (Meyers, N et al., 2011). S. Rivera stated
that a hectare of forest is cleared for agriculture every five minutes in
Central America (Rivera, S et al., 2013). A few of the Central American
countries most severely impacted by deforestation are Honduras,
Panama, and Costa Rica. Historically, Honduras was almost entirely
covered by trees, with only half a percent of land not forested.

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Consistent with Rivera and colleagues, about half of that remains
today, with about 2% of the countrys forest being chopped down each
year. (Rivera, S et al., 2013). As reported by Forrestel and Peay, the
annual deforestation rates in La Amistad Biosphere Reserve, Panama,
were low between 1987 and 1998 at 0.05%, but increased nearly
twelve-fold between 1998 and 2001 to 0.6%. The accelerated
depletion of forest cover in Panama, due to an increase in population
and pressures of development, confirms the negative ecological impact
of this previously isolated region (Forrestel, A et al., 2015). Costa Rica,
in particular, is where most of the forested areas of Central America
still remain, all thanks to ecotourism. About a quarter of the country is
under environmental protection and conservation due to the tourism
industry. The fate of rainforests would be much less secure without the
annual inflow of tourist dollars. As said by Andam Kwaw, approximately
10% of the protected forests in Costa Rica would have been deforested
had they not been protected. Although, only 5% of the land outside of
the preserved areas remain forested (Andam, KS et al., 2008). If
Honduras and Panama, and the rest of Central America for that matter,
follow the examples set by Costa Rica and protect their remaining
rainforests, they would experience much less loss from deforestation in
the long run.
In conclusion, if deforestation efforts continue at these rates, the
destruction of ecosystems will lead to environmentally harmful

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consequences. The deforestation of trees not only lessens the amount
of carbon stored, but it also releases carbon dioxide into the
atmosphere. Many species of plants and animals are also losing their
habitats to deforestation, which can eventually lead to species
extinction. The water cycle and soil erosion will also be affected by the
destruction of rainforests. Rainfall will no longer be absorbed by trees,
which will lead to a reduction in the amount of oxygen and water vapor
produced, and soils will be more prone to erosion, causing problems in
vegetation growth. We must bear in mind that the preservation of
ecosystems will ultimately lead to the prevention of global warming,
and a healthier planet overall.

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Citations
A. Forrestel, K. G. Peay. Deforestation in a Complex Landscape:
La Amistad Biosphere Reserve, Environmental Sciences and Pollution
Management, Volume 22, Number 1-2 (April 2015), pp. 49-71,
<http://ezproxy.stockton.edu:2048/login?
url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/19504732?accountid=29054>
David Carr. Forest Clearing Among Farm Households in the Maya
Biosphere Reserve. The Professional Geographer, Volume 57, Number
2 (2005), pp. 157-168, <http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?
ArticleID=487C8712C3A4DB0BD46F>
G. Bala, K. Caldeira, M. Wickett, T. J. Phillips, D.B. Lobell, C. Delire,
A. Mirin. Combined climate and carbon-cycle effects of large-scale
deforestation. Proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences of
the United States of America, Volume 104, Number 16 (April 2007), pp.
6550-6555, <http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?
ArticleID=420F9A37DDC1F4688034>
Kwaw S. Andam, Paul J. Ferraro, Alexander Pfaff, G. Arturo
Sanchez-Azofeifa, Juan A. Robalino. Measuring the effectiveness of
protected area networks in reducing deforestation. Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Volume
105, Number 42 (October 2008), pp. 16089-16094,

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<http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?
ArticleID=454081FB12A2791F8B8D>
Leticia Durand, Elena Lazos. Colonization and tropical
deforestation in the Sierra Santa Marta, Southern Mexico. Evironmental
Conservation, Volume 31, Number 1 (March 2004), pp. 11-21,
<http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?
ArticleID=0M1G9TFE2G1LPLTB3APK>
Mark B. Dyurgerov, Mark F. Meier. Twentieth century climate
change: evidence from small glaciers. Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Volume 97,
Number 4 (February 2000), pp. 1406-11,
<http://ejournals.ebsco.com/direct.asp?
ArticleID=41B691B81F456520B549>
Michael D. Mastrandrea, Stephen H. Schneider. Resource Letter
GW-2: Global Warming. American Journal of Physics, Volume 76,
Number 7 (July 2008), pp. 608-614,
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ArticleID=4F75B44F75A3F5F9E256>
Norman Meyers, Richard Tucker. Deforestation in Central
America: Spanish Legacy and North American Consumers.
Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management, Volume 11,
Number 1 (December 2011), pp. 55,

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<http://ezproxy.stockton.edu:2048/login?
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P. C. D. Milly, A. Cazenave, C. Gennero. Contribution of climatedriven change in continental water storage to recent sea-level rise..
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States
of America, Volume 100, Number 23 (November 2003), pp. 13158-61,
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ArticleID=4D49A311B2259908D911>
S. Rivera de Anguita, P. Martinez, R. D. Ramsey, T. A. Crowl.
Spatial Modeling of Tropical Deforestation Using Socioeconomic and
Biophysical Data. Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management,
Volume 12, Number 2 (August 2013), pp. 321-334,
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url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1427011819?
accountid=29054>