How does Deforestation affect Photosynthesis?
Trees are the Earth's greatest air cleaner. Through the act of photosynthesis, plants absorb carbon dioxide and sun light through chloroplast and convert them into oxygen and glucose, which all animals need in order to live. Animals do not gain energy through this process, but they can produce energy in their mitochondria, in the actions of cellular respiration. Eliminating trees, increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which is a major contributing factor in globe warming and climate change. Therefore the more trees our plant has the less carbon dioxide in the air, because all plants use photosynthesis to produce energy. This energy comes from this poisonous gas and sun light.
The amount of carbon dioxide has increased greatly since the industrial revolution. This is because of the burning of fossil fuels and increased deforestation. Trees are full of stored carbon, especially old growth forests. When a tree dies and begins the process of decay, carbon is slowly released back into the atmosphere. About 1.6 Gt (gross tonnage) of carbon is released each year on behalf of deforestation. Forest store large amounts of carbon in a biomass and when they are abolished all of the carbon is released back into the atmosphere at once.
