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Running head: DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

The Effects of Deforestation on Food Security

Course: HH-NURS4546-C
Health and Healing: Global Context of Nursing

Submitted by: Andrew Marcoux


Student Number: 213150131
Submitted to: John Remington
Date: December 1, 2015

DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

As a nurse working for the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA), I have knowledge of
many health disparities not only in Canada, but worldwide. One of the primary health disparities
of my interest involves food security and safety for all. Linked with a vast level of deforestation,
the food industry has been suffering greatly, and access to food has become challenging for
some. This paper outlines the issue of deforestation related to food insecurity, how it affects
nursing on a global scale, how this issue can be addressed, and the start of a policy plan for the
CNA to focus on this health inequity.
The main concern here is that deforestation of the planet is occurring at a substantial rate.
Every year, there are nearly 13 million hectares of timberland depleted, mostly due to human
activity (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2011). These forests are
harvested for several reasons such as fulfilling lumber demands, agricultural expansion, and
infrastructure implementation (Asner et al., 2006). With the continually increasing global
population, the agricultural industries are at an increasing need to supply sufficient food for the
demands of these global forces. The result in some countries is the clearing of forests to make
more available land for farming (Shriar, 2002). This poses multiple problems with ecosystem
sustainability and diversity, soil conditions, food sources for other species, and the
photosynthesizing of carbon dioxide (CO2) to oxygen (O2) (England & Rosemond, 2004;
Cederberg, Persson, Neovius, Molander & Clift, 2011). This, in turn, can affect the health of not
only humans, but all species on the planet; for example, an increase of CO2 exposure to tobacco
plants has shown a decrease in photorespiration, an alteration in the amino acid ratios, and a
significant increase in disaccharide production (Geiger et al., 1998). Since cattle ranching is the
most common cause of deforestation and is responsible for over 70% of livestock emissions
(Shriar, 2002; Kurihara, Magner, Hunter, & McCrabb, 1999), the increase of CO2 from

DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

deforestation and the increase in emissions from the resulting cattle farming poses a problem
with sustainability, and yet another problem with deforestation.
Deforestation largely affects the ecosystems that many food producing species live
within. An investigation by England and Rosemond (2004) analyzed the progressive
deforestation of a riparian forest in the United States, and revealed a significant decrease in
carbon and nitrogen-based isotopes that are crucial components in the aquatic food web. This
progressive decrease in carbon and nitrogen-based isotopes affected the amount of food available
for crayfish and other aquatic animals that rely on a arthropod-based diet (England & Rosemond,
2004), which can result in fewer available aquatic food sources for humans. Although
deforestation affects food sources at a considerably small level, it can consequentially affect
foodstuffs that humans rely on, resulting in food security issues. Although these food security
issues have been studied predominantly in the United States, England and Rosemond (2004)
suggest that this can affect other nations just the same.
On a global scale, nurses can be more cognizant of the paper waste they produce, as well
as advocate for electronic based charting (EBC). As stated by Pourasghar, Malekafzali, Koch and
Fors (2008), advocating for EBC can offset the need to harvest trees for paper, reducing the
amount of deforestation required. There are several other reasons why hospitals should integrate
EBC systems, such as faster information retrieval, fewer issues of illegible handwriting, and a
reduction of hospital spending on paper products (Pourasghar et al., 2008). A successful change
to EBC systems have produced mostly positive feedback, such as a 90% increase in satisfaction
regarding nurses ability to retrieve patient information (Pourasghar et al., 2008). Despite the
distant connection, this change reduction in paper use or completely changing to EBC can reduce
deforestation in areas that require trees for their byproducts needed in the food web.

DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

There are many policies and initiatives regarding deforestation, and its regulation.
Unfortunately, up until the 1990s, many countries had no official forest policies, making it legal
to clear-cut large woodland areas without replenishing this same resource (Grainger &
Malayang, 2006). These lack of policies brought a referendum to some countries, like the
Philippines and the integration of their 1986 Constitution, which led to regulation of
deforestation in the country (Grainger & Malayang, 2006; Carandang, 2005). The
implementation of their Constitution increased forest cover in the Philippines by over 1.7 million
hectares from 1986 to 2004 (Carandang, 2005).
National governments, such as the Canadian government, should commence research of
woodlands and how they maintain habitats that are crucial within the food webs. Although
research by England and Rosemond (2004) has shown the effects of deforestation and how it
affects an aquatic food web, more information is needed regarding other species, and how
deforestation affects their own food webs. One method of decreasing the demand for paper
products lies in the medical waste system. The International Council of Nurses (2004) makes
recommendations in reducing wastes, making purchasing decisions in using recycled paper and
paper products, and facilitating knowledge of medical waste practices that can protect the
environment. These recommendations can be adopted by national governments, and can reduce
the reliance on deforestation to supply their paper needs.
Since the administration of health services is the responsibility of each respected province
or territory (Government of Canada, 2015), there is much that can be done at the provincial level
regarding medical waste. The integration of electronic medical records in Ontario has made
significant changes in the need for paper products in the healthcare system, and a resulting
reduced cost to the healthcare system (eHealth Ontario, 2015). This system benefits the

DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

individual by reducing healthcare costs through decreasing deforestation to supply these once
relied-on and costly record systems (eHealth Ontario, 2015).
International governments and governing bodies should address this problem by
integrating electronic medical record systems in their hospitals and any other appropriate
facilities. The integration of this system, although initially expensive, can save money and lessen
deforestation through reduced paper use (Li et al., 2012). One example would be the integration
of EBC in a major Chinese hospital, where the net benefit over a 6 year period totaled $559,025
(Li et al., 2012). If other countries could base their transitions to EBC on this Chinese hospital
example, they would be doing their part in preserving crucial riparian forests, allowing food
webs to recover and/or flourish.
Through thorough research, the CNA would be capable of producing position statements
on the effects of high paper use, and how they affect the ecosystem in more ways than just tree
depletion. The CNA already has position statements that speak-of environmental responsibility
(Canadian Nurses Association, 2009), and could integrate more information on the topic of
ecosystem sustainability and how it related to high paper use. The CNA is well known for their
involvement in politics, especially with the recent 2015 Federal Election. Through lobbying, I
believe that the CNA could effectively integrate changes in federal and provincial policies
regarding deforestation that not only concern the healthcare system, but nation-wide structures
and systems.
If I were to integrate a policy, it would surround the aspects of limiting deforestation to
areas that have ecosystems which rely less on woodlands, than in areas that find these trees vital.
Although nearly every ecosystem relies on trees to some extent, studies by arborists and
scientists could determine which areas should be spared of deforestation compared to others

DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

(Asner et al., 2006). One example is the studying of ecosystems affected by the vast
deforestation of the Andean foothills in Ecuador by Bojsen (2005). As studied and concluded by
Bojsen (2005), deforestation of riparian forests along riverbeds had effectively changed the
temperature, water chemistry, and the level of UV exposure. These changes contributed to
reduced food sources for many fish species, thus reducing the amount of fish available for human
consumption (Bojsen, 2005). Evidences such as this can be presented to the Canadian
government and other related regulatory bodies to attempt a change in deforestation practices,
and subsequently stabilize the aquatic species affected by these practices.
The CNA can take numerous actions in collaboration with provincial associations. One of
these being increased lobbying efforts in conjunction with environmental based interest groups.
This undertaking could encourage governments to implement EBC systems in more hospitals,
and eventually eliminate paper charting practices. This has been seen in the new Wilson Street
site of the Humber River Hospital in Toronto, where paper-based charting systems have been
eliminated (Government of Ontario, 2015). This system is projected to save a significant amount
of money from the use of EBC, and will allow more funds to stay in the healthcare system
(Infrastructure Ontario, 2012). Observing these significant savings in hospital funds, other paperbased hospitals are at a clear disadvantage. One implication of not following through with this
change can result in a continued and unnecessary deterioration of woodland forests, and the food
webs that rely on these forests. Not only is the saving of hospital funds an advantage to this plan,
the reduction in environmental impacts from reduced paper use can subsequently benefit the
ecosystems that many species rely-on, including those of humans.

DEFORESTATION AND FOOD SECURITY

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