Environmental Concerns

Subject : Environmental Science Grade and Section of Learners: 07 – Magalang;
Matapat
Topic : Environmental Concerns Subject Teacher : John Rush Set S. Digma
DISCUSSION TOPICS:
ENVIRONMENTAL
CONCERNS
INTRODUCTION
Can you describe the condition

of the environment where you live in
now? How situation of the Philippine
environment and the global
environment as well?
Nowadays, we often read from the newspapers,

see in televisions, and hear over the radio
several environmental calamities. Our forests
are being denuded; land, water, and air are being
polluted. The protective ozone layer is being
destroyed. The earth's climate is warming due to
increasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Many species of plants and animals are getting
extinct. These and many more are our concerns.
I. THE VANISHING
FORESTS
Approximately one-third of the earth's

surface is desert; one third is forests, savanna,
and wetlands; and one-fifth is glacial ice and
tundra. The remaining area is occupied by
humans. The world's forests are now being
depleted at a rate faster than we can imagine.
The Philippines, for example, has

about 30 million hectares of land. Out of
this, 18 million hectares are eligible forest
land. Fifty years ago, we had 15 million
hectares of virgin forests. Twenty-five years
ago, these were reduced to only 4.5 million
hectares and in the 1980s we barely have a
million hectares of virgin forest. We lost
more than 70 percent of our forests! Trees
are cut down at a rate of 17 trees per hour.
Globally, the forests are

destroyed at a rate of about 50
million acres every year. Half or 50
percent of the forests of the world
has been cut down. If this trend of
forest destruction continues, the
world's forests and their inhabitants
will be nearly gone by the middle of the next century.
ECOLOGICAL INSIGHT
Forests cover about one-third of the earth's surface. But the world is now losing them,
Globally, about 50 million acres of forests are destroyed each year.
The importance of forests is immeasurable. We derive many benefits from the

forests directly or indirectly.
I. Forests benefit people directly by:
1. providing food to all organisms;

2. providing a total of about 5 000 commercial
products such as timber and paper;
3. serving as habitat to many organisms;
4. giving temporary refuge from the busy life
in the city;
5. supplying wood for cooking; and,
6. serving as recreational places.
II. Indirect benefits from the forests include the

following:
1. Preventing floods and soil erosion.

2. Controlling the climate.
3. Storing large amount of carbon.
4. Assisting in the cycle of water, carbon, and oxygen.
ECOLOGICAL INSIGHT
The benefits we derive from the forests are numerous. Forests provide us food, commercial
products, habitats, wood, temporary refuge from a busy life, and pleasure. Forests also
prevent floods and soil erosion as well as global warming, control the climate, and assist in
the cycle of water, carbon, and oxygen.
Causes of
Forest Destruction
The following are some of the causes of forest destruction:
1. Slash-and-burn agriculture—Slash-and-
burn agriculture, or the more commonly known
practice of kaingin, accounts for about 25
percent of the total forest destruction. Poverty
and landlessness drive some people to cultivate
the forests for agricultural purposes, employing
the kaingin method.
2. Forest fires—Forest fires also

contribute to forest destruction.
Forest destruction due to fires
averages yearly to about 25 140
hectares. Forest fires may be caused
accidentally by lightning and
purposely by people. Fires destroy
the plants and animals, aggravate
erosion of soil especially from the
slope, and increase temperature.
3. Fuel wood gathering—The demand for firewood

is increasing due to increasing population and
poverty. People use wood for cooking because
they cannot afford electricity and gas fuels.
4. Logging—Cutting of trees for
commercial purposes, especially for
export, contributes heavily to forest
destruction. This logging industry is
intensified by our export-oriented
economic policy.
5. Social and psychological causes—Our

system of moral values and attitudes toward ourselves and the environment is also a
factor in forest destruction. Sometimes, the value of pakikisama is practiced at the
expense of sacrificing the common good.
6. Adoption of inappropriate technology—We Filipinos have the inclination to invest with

the least capital but get the most profit. This leads to the adoption of cheap but
inappropriate technology and unsound ecological practices.
Consequences of
Forest Destruction
1. Floods and soil erosion—When forests are destroyed, there are no more trees that
absorb water. This results in erosion of topsoil
and increased runoff, which in turn result in
floods in the lowland areas.
2. Damage to private and public
properties—Floods due to deforestation have
resulted in the destruction of houses,
properties and infrastructures.
3. Damage to crops, livestock, and fish ponds—
Flooding and soil erosion from forest
destruction have brought about damage to
crops, livestock, and fish ponds.
4. Threat to the ozone layer—The clear cutting of

timber allows bacteria to produce nitrous oxide, and
the heat produced during the burning of trees combines nitrogen with oxygen to make
nitrous oxide, this gas is released into the atmosphere and if a tremendous amount enters
the upper atmosphere, it can contribute to the
destruction of the ozone layer.
5. Greenhouse effect—Forests have the highest rate
of photosynthesis compared to other forms of
vegetation. They also contain as much carbon as
the atmosphere. With the destruction of forests,
the stored carbon is released into the atmosphere.
stimulate greenhouse effect or global warming.
6. Marine life destruction—Silts (soil erosion) from

forests reach bodies of water and cover coral reefs.
Coral reefs are important
breeding places for
phytoplanktons.
Phytoplanktons serve as food
to fishes. When coral reefs are covered by silt, sunlight is
blocked and photosynthesis of these plants is reduced. Less
phytoplanktons means less food for the fish.
7. Loss of biological diversity—Forests are
habitats to all forms of organisms. Different
species of plants and animals live in the forest.
When forests are destroyed, all their inhabitants
will be destroyed too.
EVALUATION ACTIVITIES: THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

I. Provide what is being asked by the following:
1. Enumerate at least five reasons why forests are important.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Give three causes of forest destruction? Explain each based on your own understanding.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
3. Give at least five consequences of forest destruction.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
I. On a whole bond paper, make your own poster – slogan campaigning against
the destruction of forests. (10 pts)

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Subject : Environmental Science Grade and Section of Learners: 07 – Magalang;

Can you describe the condition

Nowadays, we often read from the newspapers,

Approximately one-third of the earth's

The Philippines, for example, has

Globally, the forests are

The importance of forests is immeasurable. We derive many benefits from the

I. Forests benefit people directly by:

1. providing food to all organisms;

II. Indirect benefits from the forests include the

1. Preventing floods and soil erosion.

The following are some of the causes of forest destruction:

2. Forest fires—Forest fires also

3. Fuel wood gathering—The demand for firewood

5. Social and psychological causes—Our

6. Adoption of inappropriate technology—We Filipinos have the inclination to invest with

4. Threat to the ozone layer—The clear cutting of

6. Marine life destruction—Silts (soil erosion) from

EVALUATION ACTIVITIES: THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

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