Focus Issue: Tree Canopy

Deforestation is a global problem. Trees take carbon dioxide out of the air and produce oxygen. Fewer trees means more carbon dioxide left in the atmosphere, which contributes to global warming. In addition, the Earth’s forests, particularly the tropical rainforests, provide habitats for much of the planet’s biodiversity. As these forests are cut down for farmland, the Earth’s species are going extinct at an accelerating rate.

According to The Houston Green Coalition, Houston’s heavy tree canopy has declined from 31% of the city’s total area to 26% since 1972. The lost tree canopy would have removed 15.3 million pounds of air pollutants annually, and represents the loss of storm water runoff equal to a $237 million man-made system.

Deforestation and Rainforest Websites
Houston Arboretum http://www.houstonarboretum.org — Gateway to great websites
The National Arbor Day Foundation http://www.arborday.org
Rainforest Action Network http://www.ran.org
Rain Forest Alliance http://www.rainforest-alliance.org — Includes Smart Wood, certified wood products made from eco-managed forests.
Save America’s Forests http://www.saveamericasforests.org

Deforestation and Rainforest Books
Shrinking Forests (Our Fragile Planet), by Bernard S. Cayne.
Who Will Save the Forests? Knowledge, Power & Environmental Destruction, by Tariq Banuri, ed.
The Rainforests: A Celebration, by Living Earth Foundation, L. Silcock, ed.
Last Stands: A Journey Through North America’s Vanishing Ancient Rainforests, by Larry Pynn.