Earlier, the green belt of rainforests covered about 12-14% of earth's land surface. Today, the rainforests cover only about 2-6% of the earth's land surface. Now, a large number of rainforests have been depleted because of:
- Large-scale developmental and industrial activities
- Clearing of land for farming and mining
- The use of trees in industrial processes
- The need for wood for industrial processes
Due to deforestation, the top soil gets further washed away. As a result, there is no scope for growth of trees. Hence, rainforests are depleting.
