How to Preserve Forests for Future Generations: 5 Brilliant Tips

How to Preserve Forests for Future Generations

You’re already aware that it’s important to live sustainably at home and make your home as energy efficient as possible. You’re no doubt conscious of those things and doing well with them, but even so, it never hurts to have a reminder that your actions affect life far beyond your home environment.

One of the world’s significant — and as-yet unsolved — problems is the ongoing loss of crucially important forest habitats. According to the Arbor Day Foundation, contemporary living has resulted in the loss of an estimated 1 billion acres of forestland since the year1990. Deforestation and forest degradation have an immediate effect on various wildlife populations, and these effects affect the entire web of life on earth.

Luckily, there are some easy actions you can take that can make a significant difference in stopping deforestation and preserving the world’s forests for wildlife and future generations to enjoy:

Plant New Trees

Trees are environmentally useful in countless ways. They are some of the most useful tools in the battle against climate change. They can help to purify the air by removing carbon dioxide and then releasing oxygen into the surrounding atmosphere. Trees’ roots reach long distances to prevent soil erosion and runoff. Planting new trees is one of the most environmentally friendly activities you can be doing – and the best part is that it’s really easy to do.

Reduce Your Use of Paper Products

There are many creative ways to reduce your use of paper: 

Use Automatic Wireless Billing

The most efficient and eco-friendly way to handle billing is to have it all happen automatically. This will not only save paper; it will also save you time and ensure you don’t forget to pay any important bills.

Email Your Colleagues Instead of Sending Paper Memos

Paper memos are now obsolete. Instead, it’s preferable to send important information via email.

Get the Most Out of Paper When You Need to Use It

There are likely to be times when you can’t avoid printing on paper. In those cases, it’s ideal to use every inch of the paper you possibly can. Print on both sides of the paper. Reduce your font size to fit as much information on the page as possible. Make use of the “print preview” function before printing so that you can ensure your page will print correctly and paper won’t be wasted in the process. Recycle paper whenever possible after its useful life has expired.

Use a Bidet or Choose Bamboo Toilet Paper

Most people think of toilet paper as being a crucially important part of personal hygiene. Collectively, we don’t really give much consideration to the huge environmental impact it makes. Yet toilet paper is one of the worst culprits for contributing to deforestation. If you’re using toilet paper at a typical rate, by the time you die, you’ll have been responsible for flushing away about 384 trees’ worth of raw material, according to the Sierra Club. Considering that, we’re literally flushing our world’s forests down the toilet.

A bidet is one popular option for reducing toilet paper use. This option is most effective for people who live in areas where water is plentiful and reasonably affordable. In desert regions or other areas where water is scarce and expensive, some people may prefer bamboo toilet paper instead.

Bamboo toilet paper is a more sustainable option than ordinary toilet paper because it doesn’t cause or contribute to deforestation. Bamboo toilet paper is made from bamboo fibers, and bamboo is on the record as being the world’s fastest-growing plant. Bamboo is much easier to replenish than trees are, so it makes good sense to create toilet paper out of this material.

Switch to Using Cloth Dish Towels, Napkins and Handkerchiefs

Paper towels, paper napkins and facial tissues are all convenient. However, like toilet paper, they have a detrimental impact on the world’s forests. Switching to cloth products can help to preserve trees. Beyond that, they can also save you money – because once you’ve paid the one-time expense for buying them, they don’t need to be replaced as frequently as paper products do. You’re likely to have them for years if you follow the manufacturer’s instructions on caring for them.

Be Vigilant About Preventing Forest Fires 

Human activity is the cause of most forest fires, so it is critically important for every person to avoid causing this sort of horrific destruction:

• Avoid smoking outside, especially when the risk of forest fires is high.
• When camping, build campfires responsibly. Supervise all fires closely, and be absolutely sure they are extinguished before you go to sleep or leave the campsite.
• Do not set off fireworks in conditions where fires could be a risk.
• Avoid burning trash on excessively dry or windy days.

 Many people contribute to the problems of deforestation simply because they are not aware of the issue. Broad awareness is the first step in correcting the situation. When more people are aware of the things they can do to fix the problems, they are likely to take action and make a difference. 

Preserve Forests for A Better Future

These are a few of the things you can do to ensure that we collectively preserve the world’s crucially important forests and woodland habitats. Realize that if we all take small actions like using cloth napkins at home and going as paperless as possible, our efforts can make a significant difference in the long-term outcome of this situation.