Introduction

Introduction

Globally FAO estimated that there are some two billion hectares of degraded tropical forests in the world. Often, these are remnant forests, left over from harvesting of wood and nonwood forest products. The soils in these areas are usually susceptible to erosion and have low fertility. These forest areas are often susceptible to forest fires. However, some species of trees thrive in these degraded ecosystems and often, due to the poor soils, such sites have few alternative uses (other than to be used as forests). The role of foresters in a cost-effective way, is to apply the use of natural regeneration techniques/agro forestry/conservation techniques as currently known and yet to be developed, across some two billion hectares of degraded tropical forest lands in the tropics. In this era of climate change scenarios, it is critical that the methodology and implementation of natural rainforest regeneration techniques be undertaken to ensure rehabilitation of degraded forested lands to provide for the key elements of life i.e., food, shelter, air, and water. Many of the current known techniques could also be applied in the desert zones of the world.

INFLUENCE OF FORESTS ON ENVIRONMENT The forest environment consists of the physical environment surrounding the aerial portions of the tree (climatic factors), the subterranean portion (edaphic factor) and the third of the living organisms within the forest ecosystem (biotic factor). INFLUENCE OF FORESTS ON CLIMATIC CONDITIONS. Influence on Air Temperature Influence on Local Precipitation Influence on General Precipitation Influence on Atmospheric Humidity Influence on Transpiration Loss INFLUENCE OF FOREST ON EDAPHIC CONDITIONS Influence on Soil, Soil Temperature Influence on Seepage, Water Retention, Floods, Water Erosion and Ground Water Resources Influence on Wind Erosion INFLUENCE OF FOREST ON BIOTIC CONDITIONS Influence on Animal life Forests as Source of Food for Animals, as a Source of Shelter and Protection and on Animal Distribution Influence on Mankind Influence on Civilization SANITARY INFLUENCE OF FOREST Favourable Influence on Weather Carbon Sink INFLUENCE OF FOREST ON POLLUTION Air Pollution Control of Air Pollution through Forests. Plants as Air Cleaner Water Pollution Control of Water Pollution through Forests Noise Pollution Control of Noise Pollution through Forests