FOR1010-ABED_1: Lesson 2: Photosynthesis

Unit 2 - The Environmental Importance of Forests

Lesson 2: Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis: the process by which chlorophyll in plants uses the energy in sunlight to transform carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates and oxygen.

Photosynthesis

The oxygen produced by this process is used by living organisms during the process of respiration. It is estimated that one acre of healthy forest produces about four tons of oxygen per year; the Amazon rain forest produces forty percent of the world's oxygen.

The carbohydrates produced by photosynthesis are used in the forest ecosystem. These carbohydrates are used in the growth of leaves, stems, wood, flowers, fruits, and roots. These various plant tissues form the basis of every food chain in the forest.

Boreal Forest Food Chain

The arrows represent the patterns of energy exchange between the sun, plants, animals, and decomposers.

Think About it!

You now understand the process of photosynthesis, but what would happen if photosynthesis did not occur?

Life could not exist on Earth without trees because they produce most of the oxygen that humans and wildlife breathe. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen using the process of photosynthesis.
Without photosynthesis there would be no supply of oxygen and slowly the oxygen would get used up by oxidation such as rust formation. Furthermore, by removing plants, all of the many animals that depend on plants would gradually die, and the food chain would be greatly disrupted through out all exchanges.