The Importance of Rainforests

Climate change is now rightly regarded as one of the biggest problems facing our planet. But it’s not just burning fossil fuels in our homes, power plants, cars and planes that is changing our atmosphere – it’s also our rampant destruction of the natural systems that regulate the atmosphere. The most significant of these systems are the world’s tropical rainforests.

It’s perhaps unsurprising that an ecosystem which took between 60 and 100 million years to evolve and contains hundreds of thousands of known species is so important to planet Earth. Such a complex eco-system is bound to be vital to sustaining life. But how do rainforests regulate our climate?

Rainforests like the Amazon store water and are important for generating rainfall. Trees draw moisture from the earth and release it back into the atmosphere in the form of clouds. This recycling of water feeds lakes and rivers, preventing droughts which can lead to famine and disease. The Amazon also provides rainwater for crops in Brazil’s bread-basket area, and for areas far beyond Brazil. Trees also act as carbon filters, absorbing carbon dioxide and converting it into oxygen. So deforestation can have a massive impact on the climate.  Not only does the removal of trees reduce the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed, the act of burning the trees releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Deforestation is thought to be responsible for up to a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The benefits of rainforests go deeper still. The nutrients contained in the rainforest are largely stored in trees and plants. When trees are removed, so are the nutrients, along with the protection provided to the soil by the canopy. This leaves the soil open to erosion, causing floods in lowland rivers, leaving upland rivers dry, and rendering the land barren and infertile.

Rainforests are also home to many local and indigenous people who continue to live traditional lifestyles that are very dependent on the forest. Forests provide a vital source of food, shelter and livelihoods as well as cultural and spiritual significance to millions of people around the world. We also get more than a quarter of modern medicines from tropical forest plants. So far, we have only harnessed a tiny proportion of these plants. The potential uses of the other 99% must surely be a compelling reason to protect these landscapes as much as possible. There may be medical uses known to indigenous people that modern science is yet to discover. It’s vital that we work with these people – who have a deep knowledge of the forest – to protect their land so that the rainforest remains for future generations. Visit WWF and Sky’s Rainforest Rescue website to find out what you can do to save the rainforest.