Earth Day 2022

Earth Day

April 22, 2022

 

Research on climate change and the environment is always expanding. At PID Floors, we are dedicated to a lifetime of learning and supporting climate literacy. We believe everyday should be Earth Day.

What is Climate Literacy?

A climate literate person is a critical thinker who understands complex relationships of multiple variables of the climate system and acts in the best interest of long-term global health. These individuals make informed and thoughtful decisions based on science as well as economic and social factors in order to have the least impact on the climate system including a person’s carbon, water and land footprint.

 

Deforestation and Reforestation

Our corporate partners, Sustainable Harvest International (SHI) has been doing some incredible work. Above are two photos from SHI’s recent reforestation campaign in Honduras. The team in Honduras planted 2,000 trees as part of a reforestation campaign with partnering families from the community of Santa Elena in the municipality of Meámbar in the department of Comayagua. The community of Santa Elena has been heavily deforested, in large part due to a recent and disastrous bark beetle infestation.

 
Throughout 2015-2020, 10 million hectares of trees were removed from forests around the world each year. Only 5 million hectares of trees were planted each year throughout the same period.

 

Deforestation is the total removal of trees or other vegetation from land. Deforestation can be caused by human activity such as logging or agriculture, fuelwood harvesting, timber, mining, population growth, and urbanization. They can also be caused by natural disasters like forest fires. Deforestation leads to changes in soil structure, water flow patterns, plant communities, wildlife populations, and more.

 

Reforestation is simply restocking forests and woodlands. It is an effective method to fight against climate change while also maintaining the many benefits forests provide.
Forests, worldwide, support vast ecosystems, with many species completely reliant on them for their survival. Forests are also extremely important to humanity, providing health benefits, income, food, and more.

 

The social and environmental benefits forests provide
& statistics on deforestation and reforestation:
1. Forests are home to an estimated 80% of the world’s terrestrial species
2. Forests are extremely important to humanity’s health and wellbeing. They provide tens of millions of jobs, are a vital part of the food chain, and over 28,000 species of forest plants are used in medicines

 

A study found that urban reforestation projects improved the mental health of office workers who could view green spaces from their office.

3. Forests play a vital role in regulating water cycles and soil quality
4. Adding 10% more green cover in cities and towns could potentially reduce the surface temperature of the area by 2.2 °C
5. Plants found in forests release phytoncides, antimicrobial compounds. Studies have found that exposure to phytoncides can reduce stress, boost the immune system, and lower blood pressure as well as heart rate.
6. 2,000 years ago, 80% of Western Europe was covered by forests. Today, only 34% is covered by forests.

 

Learn more about the PID Floors Sustainability Initiative HERE.

 

References:
https://ugc.berkeley.edu/background-content/deforestation-reforestation/

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-18646-7#MOESM1

https://www.fao.org/3/ca9825en/ca9825en.pdf

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2793341/

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