When the people of the U.S. think about forest preservation, they think about giant forests with elegant maples and glorious pine trees being preserved and protected.
Currently, not all forests are as wonderful as they are envisioned, not all forests are protected. In order to preserve America’s forests, the U.S. Congress should pass laws entitling nature to have protected spaces where no harm can be done.
To begin, not all forests in the U.S. are protected and we need to make a change, fast. In the article Effects of Deforestation, the Pachamama Alliance states, “The loss of trees and other vegetation can cause climate change, desertification, soil erosion, fewer crops, flooding, increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and a host of problems for indigenous people.”1 Forests are being chopped down because they are unprotected. When the forests get cut down, it doesn’t produce as much oxygen for the earth, creating a horrible atmosphere for all of us to live in. The forests are very beneficial to humans and the environment overall. If the U.S. Congress passed a law sooner, we could do more to save forests.
To continue, destroying forests is also destroying natural habitats. The African Conservancy reveals three species per day are losing their habitats. Every hour 240 acres of animal habitats are being taken, due to habitat destruction. 2 Animals are losing their homes. If the forests these animals lived in were protected and preserved by the U.S. government and a law was passed by the U.S. Congress, the animals wouldn’t have to suffer. The forests are very important not to one species, but millions, taking away a whole forest could mean taking away many species. If the U.S. doesn’t protect the forests soon all animals will go extinct.
Although forests do get destroyed for many reasons, one of the ways we destroy unprotected forests is by bringing in invasive species. In a recent article, William Sutherland wrote about his experience in Hawaii, where there was destruction. “The upland forests of Hawaii, which I visited recently, provide one stark example. There, introduced avian malaria carried by introduced mosquitoes has restricted most endemic species to the cold, damp highlands. The introduced mongoose is seriously affecting ground-nesting species. The main forest tree, the ohi’a, is dying from an introduced pathogen on one island that will surely be spread elsewhere.”3
Nature won’t grow, neither will society if we can’t provide preserved forests. If the U.S. Congress passed a bill for the protection of more forests, there wouldn’t be as much habitat destruction and invasive species. Invasive species aren’t natural, it’s humans disturbing nature and creating destructive habitats. If the forests were protected nothing could be destroyed.
In addition, multiple unprotected grounds where habitats are being destroyed are in private lands, not protected by the government.
According to Tom Tidwell, a part of the World Conservation Congress, he declared, “Fifty-six percent of our forest lands are in private ownership. The rest are managed by local, tribal, state, and federal governments. My agency alone, the U.S. Forest Service, manages about 20 percent of the forest land in the United States. The U.S. Forest Service manages about 77 million acres of federal land called national forests and national grasslands.”4 Not much of the land is owned by the government, resulting in the majority of America’s forests unprotected. If the U.S. Congress did act on this issue, they could buy private land. When they buy private land, they would not have to turn it into a national park, just a conservatory for nature.
However, some manufacturing companies that use materials from forests may disagree, due to their products being dependent on forest resources. What some may not realize is that 3.5 to 7 billion trees are cut down each year.5
Protecting the forests won’t hurt the economy, protecting the forests is protecting the environment. Preserving forests doesn’t mean we have to banish manufacturing companies’ supplies, it means we have to minimize the number of resources the companies use.
Overall, forests are important, and that’s why they need to be preserved. If society doesn’t change its ways of preserving our nature, we won’t have any left. Forests benefit people, like walking in the park with family or trying to find a quiet space. Forests are an important place because not only do they benefit us, but they benefit the environment. If the United States Congress doesn’t start drafting laws and regulations for more preserved and safe forests, shortly the forests will be gone.
Claire Gach is an eighth-grade student at Clarkston Junior High School.

FOOTNOTES
1 Pachamama Alliance, Effects of Deforestation, www.pachamama.org/effects-of-deforestation, 2021
2 Animals Matter, Facts- Wildlife, www.animalmatters.org/facts/wildlife/ , 2021
3 William Sutherland, OPINION: CHANGING TIMES CALL FOR CHANGES IN HOW WE PROTECT AND RESTORE HABITAT, ensia.com/voices/conservation-innovation/ , January 31st ,2017
4 Tom Tidwell, State of Forests and Forestry in the United States, www.fs.usda.gov/speeches/state-forests-and-forestry-united-states-1 , September 4th, 2016
5 Rainforest Action Network, How Many Trees Are Cut Down Each Year? , www.ran.org/the-understory/how_many_trees_are_cut_down_every_year , March 6th, 2017