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In the scheme of creation, animals and plants have complementary roles. Plants are able to draw
nourishment from the earth and its minerals. Animals, in turn, draw nourishment from plants and
from each other. In return the animals enrich the environment with what the plants need, in the form
of carbon dioxide and wastes. Occasionally one of the animals, man, found it necessary to destroy
plants; but this was mostly for farming. What happened was that one type of plant was replaced
with another. So the harm done was little. On the whole the arrangement remained neat. Then came
industries.
Firstly industries need large areas of land just like farming. Secondly, unlike in farms where one type
of plant is replaced with another, industries destroy plants and replaced them with buildings. Thirdly,
industries pollute the environment. Waste chemicals from the factories destroy plants and the carbon
dioxide emitted is too much for the trees to cope with. The harm continues as more and more plants
are destroyed to make way for buildings. As a result the plants are fighting a losing battle.
Of special concern are the rainforests. The area of thousands of acres along the equator,
throughout
the world is the home of the rainforest. It is impenetrable jungle throughout and has been the fortress,
since the beginning of time, where a myriad of plants and animals have
thrived undisturbed. The
rainforests are a sort of lung for the world. There are so many plants in the belt that they actually
have a great role in the control of world weather. Needless to say, any destruction of the rainforest
will play havoc with world weather.
In earlier times, the rainforests used to be cleared for farming and a little for timber. But how with
the rest of the world's forest almost depleted, the rainforest is being systematically destroyed. What
is being used is heavy machinery to destroy vast stretches of the forest at incredible speed. The
destruction is so fast that the jungle cannot recover at all. The world is aghast as everyone sees that
the harm is to everyone.
To the countries which contain the rainforests, there seem to be little alternative. The need the land
for farming to support ever increasing populations and the timber from the forest
fetches prices in
the world market. The other countries that are crying out to save the forests are, ironically enough,
those who have already destroyed all their forests for the very reason that the rainforest countries
are now destroying theirs. The reply of the rainforest countries is a simple one: We are only doing
what you have done and for the same reason as you, to feed ourselves. No one can argue with
this.
Can anything be done? One possible answer seems to be that it is possible if the whole world can
be seem as a single community. If this becomes a reality, then the problem will be resolved
immediately. Everyone will be fed from the farms and the industries in places where there is an
abundance of land for such purposes. At the same time, the rainforests will belong to everyone and
no one will be able to destroy them. Is this a farfetched idea?
History is full of countries which have combined, often willingly and
peacefully, so that they will be stronger. India is a combination of countries,
so is the US, so is Britain and even Indonesia. The European Economic Market is
headed out to be a loose federation. In our own area, ASEAN holds a lot of
promise. From the combination of small countries to form a larger one, the
combination of the larger countries unto one single borderless world is only s
small step. If survival is at stake, even
such a miracle can take place. |
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5. |
The rainforest and the countries that own
them have in recent years come to prominence. The forests are being
destroyed methodically to make way for farms and factories. The world is
alarmed because the rainforests are vital to the control of weather for
the whole world. Wanton destruction of them will cause havoc to the
world and bring disaster. While the rest of the world is concerned,
the rainforest countries themselves seem helpless to stop destroying the
forests. They need the forest space for farming in order to support
their growing populations. In fact all they are doing is what the rest
of the world has already done -- destroying the forest for the
land.
The writer suggest that the problem can be solved if the world takes
the stand that it is just one big country. if that happened, then the
rainforests can be left alone while the other countries can support the
rainforests countries with their needs. ( 158 words ) |
