subject: Timber Plantations Have An Impact On The Natural Environment [print this page] For some time saw mills as well as lumber merchants obtained their wood from tropical rain forests and other natural stands of timber around the world. This is no longer acceptable as well as pressure has been placed upon them to discover other sources of wood for their projects as well as clients. For this reason there are now many farms all over the world where trees are specially grown for commercial use.
This is really very handy for the wood merchants as they are now able to get straighter bits of lumber and do not need to search through the various types of wood that might be found in an all natural setting to find the kind of wood that they would like or their customers want. Instead they know precisely what they have available and can produce the wood they need if they plan far enough in advance and plant the right trees.
These wood plantations have a number of results on the environment however. Some of these effects are desirable and others are damaging.
The thing that these plantations have in their favor is the fact that they're helping to save the rainforests and other natural areas of woodland from deforestation. They lessen the need of the actual timber vendor to harvest naturally occurring populations of trees. These types of plantations also help the ozone layer whilst the trees are growing to harvestable size. Just like natural areas of woodland the trees consume green house gasses and produce oxygen that increases the amount of oxygen in the air and so can help to prevent the hole within the ozone layer from growing. For more information on solid wood go to http://www.vukacmd.co.za.
The actual plantations may also have a negative effect on the environment however. If the plantation proprietor makes use of fertilizers to help the trees within their growth there is the possibility this fertilizer will contaminate the local water supplies. As it rains the fertilizer will be cleaned in to the dirt and through the dirt into the subterranean water reservoirs that exist around the globe as well as feed the rivers and streams of our world. Even slight contaminants of the ground water can have extreme effects on the nearby wildlife as well as plants. It's been known to reduce the bio-diversity of nearby bodies of water and may affect populations of wildlife and flora to the degree the dominant life forms alter and the balance in the local population is removed. This is problematic and may cause many far reaching problems that are not yet completely understood.
As you can tell, though timber plantations have had a great impact on the environment they have to be managed carefully to prevent or at least limit their potential negative effects on the surrounding areas. It is hoped that after a while more eco-friendly fertilizers will be developed that are just as cost effective for the plantation owners and do not cause as much damage to the surrounding areas. It is crucial that any wood land that is fertilised is actually fertilised very carefully and the quantity of chemical seepage is monitored and managed as far as possible.
