Rainforests and Global Warming

Another way that too much carbon dioxide gets put into the atmosphere is when rainforests get cut down or burned. Rainforests are huge forests that are found around the world. They contain over half of all the world's animals and are home to some of the largest trees on the planet. They are also where many native tribes of people live. Trees—including those found in the rainforest—contain a lot of carbon in their branches and leaves. When the rainforest is cut down and burned, or left to rot, this carbon gets released into the air and becomes carbon dioxide. As we already know, carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that creates global warming.

One way to help stop global warming is to protect the rainforests. That's because when the rainforest trees are left standing, all that carbon stays within their leaves and branches and doesn't get released into the air as carbon dioxide. Not only that, but trees inhale carbon dioxide! That means that when trees are left standing, they remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which helps keep the planet cool.