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November 4, 2016

Proper Land Use and Modern Agricultural Practices to Save Forest Cover

It is apparent that the world’s population is increasing over the years. Indeed, according to the U.S. Census Bureau (2015), the human population is projected to 9 billion by 2044 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015). Consequently, more land and food will be required to sustain the population. In the search for more land for building and practicing agriculture, people have resulted in carrying out massive deforestation.

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However, proper management of the existing land can significantly reduce the rate of encroachment to the current forest areas.  In essence, people should appreciate living in apartments that occupy less space compared to individual houses scattered over expansive land areas. A large number of people can be accommodated in an apartment minimizing the need to build individual houses that require an expansive land. Consequently, adopting apartments as the new mode of accommodation can reduce the need to seek for more building land. Eventually, the level of deforestation, on the grounds of acquiring building land, would significantly decline.

Deforestation is also largely attributed to the need for land to practice agriculture. It is impractical to cease agricultural practice since it is the main source of food (Barraclough & Ghimire, 2013). However, there has been a tremendous advancement in the field of agriculture. For instance, the use of fertilizers, development of hybrid plants, and irrigation, has helped in increasing the crop yields (Tuteja, Gill, & Renu, 2012). Additionally, leveraging genetic engineering in animals has enabled development of animals that produce increased amounts of meat and milk. Consequently, it has become possible to produce a substantial amount of food from just a small acreage.

Therefore, I disagree with the statement that the destruction of forests is inevitable as our need for land and food grows.

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