DEFORESTATION'S effect on the carbon cycle
All plants use photosynthesis to make their own food. Photosynthesis is the process of a plant taking in sunlight, carbon dioxide and water, to produce glucose for itself, and release oxygen, which we use to breathe. Using photosynthesis, all the trees balance out the amount of carbon in our atmosphere. Now, all living things take a certain part in the carbon cycle. In the carbon cycle, all plants take in the carbon dioxide released by humans and animals. They use the carbon in photosynthesis, which is then released back to us as oxygen. We use oxygen to breathe. So lets say we ran all out of plants due to deforestation, there would be a major change in the carbon cycle. When a human or animal dies it releases carbon into the atmosphere. If there were no plants, herbivores would end up going extinct, the carnivores that eat the herbivores would eventually go extinct, And us humans that eat both carnivores and herbivores, we would eventually have a mass extinction as well. Without plants, the main way carbon dioxide is removed from our atmosphere, would be take away. Leading to mass extinction of many animals. So without the plants in our carbon cycle, there would be a massive hole in the carbon cycle. Causing our carbon dioxide levels to extremely high and our oxygen levels to go extremely low.