In case you didn’t get the 2021 eco-warrior memo, forests are saving our backs. They pull carbon out of the air, give us fresh oxygen and support natural habitats. Pledge to do more for our forests.
Forests are one of the most important environmental assets we have, which is why we plant a tree every time we sell a toothbrush. Aside from being beautiful places to take socially distant walks, their environmental benefits are astounding.
Here’s 8 reasons why we’re celebrating forests today:
1. Forests help us breathe
Could there be a more important reason to celebrate trees? Forests are beautiful places, but their value extends far beyond their beauty. Forests are carbon hungry, and they absorb carbon dioxide out of the air, replacing it with oxygen. This means that the air we breathe is cleaner where there are trees. A mature tree can provide enough daily oxygen to support up to 10 people.
2. Trees purify the air
As well as removing carbon dioxide from the air, trees also absorb carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide. These gases all contribute towards air pollution, so when trees get cut down, air pollution effectively increases straight away.
3. Forests help keep the Earth cool
If trees remove carbon dioxide, they also help prevent Global Warming. Carbon dioxide is directly responsible for the warming of the Earth. Forests help slow down this global warming and in turn, keeps the planet cool.
4. People stay cool, too
This cooling effect benefits people, too, which is why it’s a good idea to plant trees near homes and in cities that need to stay as cool as possible. Think of London or New York in the height of Summer. You want to sit in a park keeping cool.
5. Forests are homes
Animals and wildlife depend on the natural habitats of forests. UK forests host animals such as deers, pine martens and even some wild boars! Deforestation destroys these habitats, rendering precious wildlife homeless.
6. Forests fight erosion
Forests are valuable for farmers. When located around fields, they help to keep precious soil in place and prevent slipping. Forests help limit erosion from rain. Deforestation causes mud slides, dust storms and flooding.
7. Forests prevent droughts
Trees drink up water from the soil and release it into the atmosphere, which gets recycled as rain. In hot climates, this process provides sweet relief for animals, humans and plants, as well as farmers, who rely on consistent weather patterns for their crops.
8. Medicines come from trees
Many medicinal plants come from forests. Cacao trees provide a drug used to treat asthma, for example. The rain forests also provide the majority of compounds used in medicines that fight cancer.
International Day of Forests encourages people all around the world to take action to restore and protect forests, so that the planet can keep reaping the rewards of having trees around. Check out the video below to learn more about the agenda.
How Brushbox helps protect forests
We work with Eden Reforestation Projects to help replant trees to protect the environment. Every time we sell a bamboo toothbrush, we plant a tree. The organisation has planted over 400 million trees so far, 100,000 contributed by Brushbox.
Help plant more by purchasing a Brushbox brush today.