Global Warming 

Global warming is happening now. The planet's temperature is rising. The trend is clear and unmistakable.Every one of the past 40 years has been warmer than the 20th century average. 2016 was the hottest year on record. The 12 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998.Globally, the average surface temperature has increased more than one degree Fahrenheit since the late 1800s. Most of that increase has occurred over just the past three decades.

We are the cause. We are overloading our atmosphere with carbon dioxide, which traps heat and steadily drives up the planet’s temperature. Where does all this carbon come from? The fossil fuels we burn for energy—coal, natural gas, and oil—plus the loss of forests due to deforestation, especially in the tropics.

The scientific evidence is clear. Within the scientific community, there is no debate. An overwhelming majority of climate scientists agree that global warming is happening and that human activity is the primary cause.

Stop Deforestation

Tropical deforestation accounts for about 10 percent of the world’s heat-trapping emissions. Reducing tropical deforestation can significantly lower global warming emissions and plays an integral role in a comprehensive long-term solution to global warming.

 Reforestation

Planting new trees can help to reduce the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane significantly contribute to a changing climate. Forest are an effective, natural carbon sink, soaking up much of the carbon emitted from burning fossil fuels. Reversing global deforestation is a key element of an effective mitigation strategy to fight global warming.

Benefits of reforestation

1. Protecting species:In addition to the climate benefits, reforestation has the potential to preserve endangered species
2. Erosion:Deforestation damages and destroys habitats through erosion. Forest restoration can reverse the damage done by erosion.
3. Trees combat climate change:Excess carbon dioxide (CO2) caused by many factors is a building up in our atmosphere and contributing to climate change.
4. Trees clean the air:Trees absorb odors and pollutant gases (nitrogen oxides, ammonia, sulfur dioxide and ozone) and filter particulates out of the air by trapping them on their leaves and bark.
5. Trees provide oxygen:In one year an acre of mature trees can provide enough oxygen for 18 people.
6. Trees help prevent water pollution:Trees reduce runoff by breaking rainfall thus allowing the water to flow down the trunk and into the earth below the tree. This prevents stormwater from carrying pollutants to the ocean. When mulched, trees act like a sponge that filters this water naturally and uses it to recharge groundwater supplies.
7. Trees help prevent soil erosion:On hillsides or stream slopes, trees slow runoff and hold soil in place.
8. Trees shield children from ultra-violet rays:Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. Trees reduce UV-B exposure by about 50 percent, thus providing protection to children on school campuses and playgrounds - where children spend hours outdoors.