Water, soil, and air protection
Forests protect our water! Tree branches provide shelter from the wind, which helps cut down on evaporation from small lakes and rivers. Tree roots help out by holding the soil in place so it doesn't get washed away by rain. That keeps water cleaner and helps prevent floods. Roots also work like giant filters that clean water. Along the sea coasts, forests help keep the seashore from washing away when storms blow up. In the mountains, forests help prevent avalanches by holding the snows in place and breaking the wind. Forests trap pollution in the air, like factory smoke and car exhaust. This helps out in cities, where forests and greenbelts protect humans from dust, ash, pollen, and smoke.
Much of the earth's rain falls first on mountains, where mountain forests influence the quantity and quality of this precious freshwater resource. Mountain forests help keep water clean by storing it in root systems, and by filtering out pollutants with tree leaves and branches.
Currently, about a third of the world's largest cities (33 out of 105) get much of their drinking water directly from protected forest areas. These cities include New York, Jakarta, Tokyo, Mumbai, Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles, Barcelona, Nairobi, and Melbourne.
Forests as Habitats >>
Other Uses of Forests: Watershed >>
