Importance of Forest: Uses, Human and Economic Benefits

Forest is a precious resource for us which also serves as a home to many living organisms. Forests are important for our survival as they are responsible for providing us with food, shelter, oxygen, fuel, and other means of livelihood. They are spread across our Earth. The organisms living in the forest are interdependent and their lives mainly depend on water, air, and sunlight. Depending on the climate of the region, various distinct types of plants and animals exist in different forest areas. Trees, shrubs, and various types of herbs are generally found in forests. We can classify forests based on the types of trees growing in them and the climatic conditions they exist in. The various types of forests are dry, deciduous, evergreen, tropical, and partly evergreen forests. In this article, we will understand the importance of forests.

Read Also: Biochemical Cycle

Forests

Forests are an area of land that is filled by trees and which contain approximately 80 percent of the global terrestrial biodiversity. It is a resource that fulfills all the fundamental needs of human beings. Forests provide us with the oxygen we breathe to the wood that is used in the construction of homes and other infrastructure. Forests are home to various organisms and contain both biotic and abiotic elements which make up the forest ecosystem. The biotic component of the forests include shrubs, plants, trees, grasses, vines, mosses, fungi, birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and various microorganisms.

The forest is made up of four layers which are as follows:

• Emergent Layer

The emergent layer is comprised of the tallest of the trees which are 200 feet tall. These trees get abundant sunlight and have broader leaves. 

• Canopy Layer

The canopy layer is found just below the emergent layer in the forests. It’s the primary forest layer and is thickened by a maze of oval branched and smooth leaves.

• Understory Layer

Plants in the understory layer develop larger leaves as the sunlight can not reach these plants directly.

• Forest Floor

The Forest Floor is humid and dark as the sunlight never reaches it. Dead branches, dead animals, and dead leaves decay in this layer and the fungus grows here.

The forest can be divided mainly into three zones based on the distance of the forest from the equator. These zones are:

1. Tropical Forests: The various sub-categories of tropical forests are seasonal, evergreen, montane, and dry forests.
2. Temperate Forests: These forests can further be classified as evergreen, broad-leaved, Mediterranean, and temperate broad-leaved forests.
3. Boreal Forests: These types of forests are found in locations where the temperature reaches the freezing point, the plants in these forests are found to be grown in higher latitudes.

The trees in the forests help in maintaining global temperatures as they are the largest storehouse of carbon dioxide. Trees and forests are very beneficial to mankind as it provides us with various resources. Yet despite their advantages, deforestation is taking place at an increased rate all over the world. Forests are important for us as:

• Trees in the forests absorb greenhouse emissions

Trees in the forests absorb various greenhouse emissions that are responsible for global warming and climate change such as carbon dioxide, thereby maintaining the ecosystem. Tropical forests store carbon in the biomass. Forests absorb a huge amount of carbon dioxide that if released into the atmosphere can prove to be highly disastrous in nature.

• They support biodiversity

Around 90 percent of the species existing in the world including various plants and animals grow and thrive in the forest areas. Forests serve as their habitat and therefore supports the various species and biodiversity by serving as their home.

• They regulate the water cycle

Forests act as a vital part of the entire process of the water cycle. They regulate the condensation, evaporation, and precipitation of water. Trees in the forests help in the process of nourishing the aquifers and the groundwater supplies. The waterfalls down into the soil through the trunk of the trees, preventing the water from the storms to carry various environmental pollutants with them to the ocean.

• They act as watershed regions.

Critical sources of water include lakes, rivers, streams, and other forest-based water tables. It preserves the various reserves of water from the radiation of the sun. For instance, the Amazon rainforest act as the largest river and watershed system in the whole world.

• They provide habitat for various species

Forests have a sustainable environment for millions of plants and animals to survive in it. Various wild animals, birds, insects, snakes, etc exist in the ecosystem of forests. Various tribal people also thrive in forests and depend on them for their survival needs.

• Trees in forests enrich the soil

The decomposition process converts the dead branches and leaves into the soil which is richer in nutrients. The microorganisms in the soil convert the various biodegradable materials into some simpler particles that can be used by plants again. The strong roots of the trees keep the soil intact in various factors that cause soil erosion such as floods. They slow down the runoff of the water especially in hilly areas and stream slopes and thus also help in converting soil erosion.

• They regulate global temperatures

Forests help in keeping the temperatures down as they provide green shade and cover. They promote rainfall and therefore help in maintaining a cool climate and appropriate levels of the water table. Through the regulation of breeze and evapotranspiration, trees regulate the temperatures in the atmosphere. 

• Forests purify the air

Plants, trees, and shrubs absorb the carbon dioxide from the environment during the daytime through the process of photosynthesis while also in turn releasing oxygen. They serve as giant lungs of Earth which helps in purifying the air by maintaining the levels of oxygen in the atmosphere and absorbing carbon dioxide. The toxins from the atmosphere are absorbed by trees by being trapped in their barks and leaves such as sulphur dioxide and ammonia.

• Forests also serve as beneficial for the economy

Trees and all their components are extremely useful for human beings. Forests provide us with timber, fruits, vegetables, wood, and various raw materials that are of extreme value to human beings and provide extreme economic value. Rubber that is used in the manufacturing of several products is also extracted by the trees.

• Forests are rich in herbs and trees which provide certain medicinal value and can help in treating various diseases. They are also non-toxic to the human body. 

• Forest is a precious resource for us which also serves as a home to many living organisms. 
• Forests are home to various organisms and contain both biotic and abiotic elements which make up the forest ecosystem.
• Forests contain approximately 80 percent of the global terrestrial biodiversity.
• Forests are important for our survival as they are responsible for providing us with food, shelter, oxygen, fuel, and other means of livelihood.
• Forests serve as Earth’s lungs which helps in purifying the air by maintaining the levels of oxygen in the atmosphere and absorbing carbon dioxide
• Forests serve as the habitat for a variety of species of plants and animals.
• Trees in the forests help in the process of nourishing the aquifers and the groundwater supplies. 
• Trees in the forests absorb various greenhouse emissions that are responsible for global warming and climate change such as carbon dioxide, thereby maintaining the ecosystem.
• The microorganisms in the soil convert the various biodegradable materials into some simpler particles that can be used by plants again.
• The forest can be divided mainly into three zones based on the distance of the forest from the equator which are tropical forests, temperate forests and boreal forests.