The UN warns that extreme cold will continue to occur
The people of Quito are wrapping themselves up under the classic tiger blanket to withstand the cold of the night. The flu and other weather-related diseases are increasing and affecting the health of children and grandparents, and everyone in general. Winter in the city doesn't even allow clothes to hang out to dry in the sun.
Studies carried out by the international organization Movimiento World Cup for Tropical Forests (WRM, for its acronym in English) explains that one of the causes of climate change is mining, because it cuts down forests.
In addition, the international foundation The Nature Conservancy explains that the loss of trees generates more pollution than the world's transport: planes, trains, cars and ships combined.
“Living forests sustain life: they benefit people, plants and animals for all the invisible work they do as a carbon store. They also help control the planet's climate and rainfall”, highlights the foundation.
Nevertheless, Francisco Cuesta, a researcher at the University of the Americas, reports that: The forests of the Andean Chocó annually remove 390,000 tons of carbon from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, 6 times more than is emitted annually by taxis in Quito. The foothill forests of the Chocó Andino contain an average of 240 species of trees greater than 5 cm in diameter in each hectare of forest.
By 2021, the Andean Chocó forests store 13,650,000 tons of carbon in their aerial biomass, constituting a key carbon sink for the country. The European Center for Meteorological Forecasts recorded the coldest winter period in the last 30 years and highlighted that this occurs due to climate change.
"It's not worth it that it gets colder in the city, or that suffocating heat comes later, we have to start taking care of nature so that this doesn't get worse," said neighbor Alejandro Nolivos.
On the other hand, the United Nations (UN) published that extreme cold will continue to occur and that the concentrations of greenhouse gases continue to increase.
In summary, forests regulate the climate of the city, so it is important to protect them to avoid the different natural catastrophes that arise from the lack of trees.