Page 81 - Science Class 08

also increasing day-by-day at the cost of natural habitat and get killed. Many other
deforesta on.
Construc on of Roads, Railway Tracks and
Dams
Construc on of new roads, railway tracks and
dams has also became necessary in our
modern world. To join remote areas to
important ci es, new roads and railway tracks
are being constructed which has also resulted
in deforesta on.
Dams are constructed for electricity and
irriga on purpose. But, they also acquire a
large area of land. Thus, it also leads to
deforesta on in many part of our country.
Making Furniture or Using Wood as Fuel
Though, we have other materials like fibre,
iron, aluminium, etc. available to make
furniture, doors, windows, etc. yet wood is s ll
widely used to make these things. Therefore,
wood is s ll in a great demand. Most of the
wood is collected from forest cu ng big trees
in numbers. Wood is also widely used in rural
areas for cooking food and for many other
hea ng purposes. These ac vi es also
contribute a lot in deforesta on.
CONSEQUENCES OF DEFORESTATION
There is a great loss caused due to defores-
ta on. Let us see how deforesta on is making
harm to animal and plant species and our
environment.
Loss of Habitat
You have studied that a wide variety of flora
and fauna is found in the forests. They have an
interrelated survival system. They have
adopted to the natural habitat and clima c
condi on. Many of them are endemic. It means
they cannot survive in other places. When
forests are cleared, many animals lose their
Science-8
animals move to other places in search of food,
but many of them die due to prevailling
unfavourable condi ons. It is, therefore,
deforesta on is the main responsible factor for
the homeless to many animals. Many other
wild animals are also in danger due to
deforesta on. We have also lost many
important variety of plants.
In recent years, it has been seen that many wild
animals enter the residen al areas where
forest land has been encroached. These wild
animals reach human se lements in search of
food and got killed by human beings.
Drought
Deforesta on increases the temperature and
pollu on level on the earth. It increases the
level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Groundwater level also gets lowered.
The increase in the amount of carbon dioxide
leads to global warming because carbon
dioxide traps heat rays reflected by the earth.
The increase in temperature on the earth
disturbs the water cycle and may reduce
rainfall. This could cause droughts. The cases of
drought have increased in recent decades.
Deser fica on
Deforesta on also affects the soil proper es.
Physical proper es of the soil get affected by
planta on and vegeta on. You already know
that plants prevent soil erosion. But, defores-
ta on has lowered the number of trees. Fewer
trees result in more soil erosion. Removal of
the top layer of the soil exposes the lower, hard
and rocky layers. This soil has less humus and
less fer le with the passage of me, the fer le
land gets converted into deserts. It is called
deser fica on.
81