Kristopher Kasulis

 A large piece of land covered with trees and many forms of underbrush (Dictionary.com)  An ecosystem or multiple ecosystems dominated by trees and other plants  There are more than 200 different definitions of a forest all serving different purposes, a legal definition is going to be different than a ecological definition

 There are a few different ways to determine if a group of trees is a forest or a woodland  A forest (according to the National Vegetation Classification system) is a cluster of trees that have peaks or crowns that overlap covering 60%-100% of the ground (from above) or the sky (from within the forest)  A woodland (according to the NVC system) is an area that has trees that cover 25%-60%

 Deforestation is happening worldwide and it has many adverse affects on the land, animals, and people around the world  Deforestation is the destruction of naturally occurring forests  Deforestation happens for many reasons  Open land is very valuable  Charcoal and lumber can be sold for a profit  Open land is used for settlement or used to pasture animals

 There are infinite numbers of effects deforestation has on earth, here are a few of the major ones  Loss of biodiversity  Change in climate worldwide  Soil erosion  And many more

 Deforestation starts a destructive chain reaction of events  First is the immediate lack of trees which causes loss of animal species, climate change, and soil erosion  Next the climate change melts ice caps which raises water levels  Those high water levels increase the soil erosion, and threaten coastal areas with more powerful hurricanes  The loss of trees in the Amazon and many other rain forests can cause extreme droughts in other areas  The loss of animal species causes lack of biodiversity and can cause the overpopulation of other species  All of these events effect our everyday life

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