With Reference to the Tropical Rainforest, Evaluate the Role and Extent of Human Activities in Modifying Its Characteristics

With reference to the Tropical Rainforest, evaluate the role and extent of human activities in modifying its characteristics

The tropical rainforest is a dynamic ecosystem that has several key characteristics that define the ecological cycle and signature features of the biome itself. Renowned for its constant temperatures and high rainfall, it has proved to be a biome capable of providing optimal growing conditions, indirectly inviting human activity such as agriculture to take advantage of these conditions.  With a growing variety of human activity seizing the opportunity the rainforest has provided, the characteristics of the rainforest have begun to change as a result of foreign stimulus.

Because of limited land space in rainforest areas such as Brazil, the impacts of agriculture and logging has had devastating effects on the tropical rainforest. With almost 2% of rainforests lost to the industry annually, it has drastically changed certain characteristics in the tropical rainforest. As trees are removed, processes such as desertification are accelerated as there are no more binding roots to weave the ground together, in turn causing a large scale multiplier effect that has major impacts on every aspect of the ecosystem and biome. Soil fertility experiences a large decline as a result of topsoil exposure, causing possible long term effects to the health of the rainforest. Nutrient cycles are interrupted as a result of deforestation, as there is no longer a canopy or dense forest floor to retain vital rainwater for plants. Rainwater also acts as a vector for nutrients to move around the ecosystem, but if there are no plants to intercept and slow the water flow, erosional processes can begin to ravage the soil, further modifying the characteristics of the tropical rainforest. In times of high precipitation, the soil will be forced to bear complete exposure to the rain as there are no longer any trees to protect it. With desertification already weakening the soil, any nutrients left in the soil is washed and leached away, leaving the soil bare and infertile, incapable of every reproducing the rainforest. Furthermore, with the trees and soil left crippled by the overexploitation of the logging and agriculture industry, the rainforest will begin to experience devastating losses in biodiversity. The issues with animal population decline as a result of deforestation are well known, but also contribute to the rainforests changing characteristics. With almost all aspects of the ecosystem affected, the climatic factors that define the rainforest will also begin to experience change. Because of insufficient interception, there is less water capable of evaporating and returning to the clouds, meaning that rainfall will release less in rarer occasions. Furthermore, with no trees and water to cool the area, average temperatures of tropical rainforests will begin to increase, which will cause the sensitive plants of the area to react, forcing them to either die or evolve rapidly in response to the change in climate, further changing the signature characteristics of tropical rainforests.