Environmental risks of tropical deforestation

Trees in tropical rain forests store huge quantities of carbon in their
tissues, helping reduce the amount present in the atmosphere. The loss of
tropical rain forests and the increased use of fossil fuels (such as oil and
gas) have led to increased concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere—
what scientists call the greenhouse effect.
Old-growth tropical rain forests are the most highly developed and
diverse ecosystems on Earth. Tropical deforestation, mostly caused by
slash-and-burn agriculture, is the major cause of the great wave of plant
and animal extinctions that is presently plaguing Earth.