Commentary - (2022) Volume 10, Issue 1
Afforestation: Impacts on vegetative dynamics
Giridhar Gandhavarapu*Received: 04-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. AAFSF-22-56119; Editor assigned: 07-Mar-2022, Pre QC No. AAFSF-22-56119 (PQ); Reviewed: 21-Mar-2022, QC No. AAFSF-22-56119; Revised: 28-Mar-2022, Manuscript No. AAFSF-22-56119 (R); Published: 05-Apr-2022, DOI: 10.51268/2736-1799.22.10.73
Description
Afforestation is the creation of a forest or stand of trees in an area where there was no previous tree cover. Many government and non-governmental organizations directly involve in afforestation programs to build forests and increase carbon capture.
Afforestation is a progressively sought-after method to fight climate concerns, as it is known to increase the soil quality and organic carbon levels into the soil, avoiding desertification.
The rate of net forest loss reduced substantially over the period 1990–2020 due to a reduction in deforestation in some countries, plus upsurges in forest area in others through afforestation and the natural extension of forests.
A 2019 study of the global potential for tree restoration disclosed that there is space for at least
9 million km2 of new forests worldwide, which is a 25% growth from current conditions. This forested area could store up to 205 gig tons of carbon or 25% of the atmosphere's current carbon pool by dropping CO2 in the atmosphere and increasing more O2.
The process of afforestation initiates with site selection. Some environmental factors of the site must be analysed, comprising climate, soil, vegetation, and human activity.
These factors will define the quality of the site, what species of trees should be planted, and what planting method should be cast-off.
After the forest site has been evaluated, the area must be prepared for planting.
Preparation can include a variety of mechanical or chemical methods, such as chopping, mounding, bedding, herbicides, and given burning. Once the site is ready, planting can take place.
One method for planting is direct seeding, which contains sowing seeds directly into the forest floor.
Another is seedling planting, which is parallel to direct seeding except that seedlings already have an established root system.
Afforestation by cutting is a great option for tree species that can reproduce asexually, where a piece of a tree stem, branch, root, or leaves can be implanted into the forest floor and sprout successfully.
Occasionally special tools, such as a tree planting bar, are used to make planting of trees easier and quicker.
Afforestation boasts many climate-related profits. Several new studies recommend that forests attract rain, which may describe why drought is occurring more often in certain parts of the world such as western Africa, where trees are sparser.
A 2017 study provides the first observational indication that the southern Amazon rainforest elicits its own rainy season using water vapour from plant leaves, which then forms clouds above it.
These findings assist in explaining why deforestation in this region is linked with reduced rainfall.
A 2009 study theorizes that forest cover plays a much greater role in defining rainfall than formerly predictable. It explains how forested regions produce large-scale runs in atmospheric water vapour and further underscores the benefit of afforestation in currently barren regions of the world.
Afforestation aids to slow down global warming by decreasing CO2 in the atmosphere and introducing more O2.
Trees are carbon sinks that remove CO2 from the atmosphere via photosynthesis and alter it into biomass.
Conclusion
The planting of trees in urban areas is also able to diminish air pollution via the trees' absorption and filtration of pollutants, comprising carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, and ozone, in addition to CO2. Afforestation can negatively disturb biodiversity through increasing fragmentation and edge effects for the habitat remaining outside the planted area. New forest plantations can present generalist slayers that would otherwise not be found in open habitat into the covered area, which could detrimentally increase predation rates on the innate species of the area. Afforestation offers other environmental benefits, comprising increasing the soil quality and organic carbon levels in the soil, evading erosion and desertification.