Deforestation: MCQ, Subjective and Practice Questions

Sarah Izhar

Content Writer

Deforestation is the clearing of forests to use the land for farming and development or other non-forest purposes.

Every year, the forest absorbs 7.6 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide. Therefore, burning down forests will emit carbon dioxide causing global warming.
Deforestation affects the climate and biodiversity, causes soil erosion, and disrupts humanity.

Deforestation

Figure: Flowchart of the effects of deforestation

MCQ Questions

Ques. The clearance of forests is known as

Afforestation
Farming
Deforestation
None of the above

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Ans. (c) Deforestation

Explanation: Deforestation refers to the clearance of forests. On the other hand, afforestation is the process of planting new trees on bare land.

Ques. Deforestation can cause:

Increased floods and tsunami.
Increased atmosphere carbon dioxide.
Increase in atmosphere temperature.
All of the above.

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Ans. (d) All the above.

Explanation: When the forests are burnt down they release carbon dioxide which affects the overall temperature of the atmosphere. The released carbon dioxide is absorbed by the sea which increases water levels leading to tsunamis and floods.

Ques. The process of cultivating the land for a few seasons and then abandoning it is called

Shift cultivation
Deforestation
Commercial farming
Arable farming

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Ans. (a) Shifting cultivation

Explanation: Shift cultivation is a temporary cultivation of forest carried out by farmers. The land is cultivated for some time before being abandoned for other uses.

Ques. Which of the following is not a cause of deforestation?

Farming
Mining
Rainfall
Grazing

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Ans. (c) Rainfall

Explanation: Farming, mining, and grazing are the man-made causes of deforestation.

Ques. Deforestation is most common in

Tropical regions
Subtropical regions
Coastal region
Both a and b

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Ans. (d) Both a and b

Explanation: It has been estimated that 95% of the deforestation occurs in the tropical regions.

Ques. What is the percentage of forest that covers the earth?

62%
31%
10%
26%

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Ans. (b) 31%

Explanation: Over 31% of the land is covered with forests.

Subjective Questions

Ques. Are there any advantages of deforestation?

Ans. There are only a few advantages of deforestation:

Deforestation gives us excess land for development.
It provides ample land for grazing animals.
It provides us with products like paper, wood, rubber etc.

Ques. Why is agriculture the major cause of deforestation?

Ans. The major cause of deforestation is agriculture, and about 40% of the forests are lost

Agricultural lands are extensively used for cattle grazing and for growing crops like corn, maize, soya, etc.
It is also used for commercial purposes like building industries, residential buildings, offices, etc.
These factors together make agriculture the major cause of deforestation.

Ques. Differentiate between afforestation and deforestation.

Ans. The following table shows the difference between the two:

Afforestation	Deforestation
Planting new trees on degraded land.	Destruction of forests for commercial or agricultural purposes.
Afforestation helps in replacing greenhouse gasses.	Deforestation increases the emission of greenhouse gasses.
It has several advantages for the ecosystem.	It has several disadvantages for the ecosystem.
It must be practiced to increase the oxygen concentration and decrease global warming.	It must be stopped to control the increase in global warming.

Ques. How does deforestation impact soil?

Ans. Soil is a source of nutrients for the organisms in the ecosystem.

The soil in a deforested land is exposed to sunlight, which increases the temperature and oxidizes the carbon to carbon dioxide present in the soil.
This carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere thereby affecting the ecosystem.

Ques. What is the difference between afforestation and reforestation? Are they the same?

Ans. Afforestation and reforestation differ from each other and are not the same. The following table shows the difference between the two:

Afforestation	Reforestation
Establishment of a new forest in an unused land.	Establishment of forest in an already existing land.
Afforestation is done in a new area.	Reforestation is done in a deforested area.
It is done to increase the forest areas.	It is done to restore the deforested land.

Ques. Which method is commonly used for deforestation?

Ans. The method most frequently applied for deforestation is slash-and-burn agriculture.

Slash-and-burn agriculture is unquestionably the most common method for deforestation.
In this method, the forests are cut off and burnt so as to leave a vacant land called swidden.
Nutrients for plants may be available from ashes that originate from burnt trees in this method.