What If All The Trees Died? | Unveiled

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What If All the Trees Died?</h4>

Trees are the silent architects and constant custodians of Earth. They’ve been a fundamental part of all the ecosystems on our planet for millions of years. We don’t always acknowledge or even notice them, but they’re there. And, if they ever weren’t there, then we’d be in a lot of trouble. 

This is Unveiled, and today we’re answering the essential question; what if all the trees died?

Let’s start by leafing through the vast world of trees, as we currently know them. According to a massive, multi-authored study published in the journal PNAS, in 2022, Earth is home to approximately 73,000 different tree species - including around 9,000 that are currently undiscovered. These range from the towering redwoods to the diminutive bonsai. And, while it’s impossible to put a precise number on it, estimates suggest that there are more than 3 trillion individual trees in the world in total. Every single one of them contributes to a green cover that blankets around thirty percent of the Earth's total land area.

These are old souls, as well. Some trees have been witness to the passage of centuries, standing as ancient sentinels on our planet for literally hundreds of years. The Methuselah tree, a bristlecone pine in California, is more than 4,850 years old, making it one of the oldest living organisms on Earth. Meanwhile, there are ancient woodlands and forests dotted all across the world map, all containing within them a unique record of history. The tree kingdom has encountered a considerable number of problems, especially in the industrial age of humankind, but it does still exist and is still vital.

Trees might reasonably be called the lungs of the Earth. They play a crucial role in maintaining the balance of atmospheric gasses in Earth’s atmosphere. Via photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen. Again, if Earth were a body, then somewhere like the Amazon Rainforest in particular would be one of its most vital organs. 

It can be said, then, that trees are our natural air purifiers, filtering out pollutants and providing continuously fresh air for all living organisms. But, then again, that’s not all they do. Whenever trees clump together to form forests, woodlands, groves and thickets, they become thriving biodiversity hotspots, hosting a constantly updating mosaic of plant, animal and fungi species. The so-called web of life really relies on trees for shelter. But also for food, energy, and for essentially maintaining the natural order. If the trees disappeared, all of the order that they provide would collapse.

Whenever trees are lost, even on a smaller scale, it knocks everything out of balance. Delicate systems get thrown into disarray, and they often can’t recover. There is an almost instant ripple effect throughout the food chain, which ultimately leads to the extinction of some (sometimes many) species. The plants and animals that do survive are forced to either adapt or migrate. If all the trees on Earth were to disappear, then we’d see this kind of environmental devastation play out to the worst possible degree.

Without trees performing photosynthesis, the oxygen levels on Earth would plummet, leading to a gradual suffocation of life. Of course, humans would not be immune to this. And, although we might hope to combat the issue with tech-driven breathing solutions, there is no doubt that in a world without trees most of us would die. Or, in fact, never be born at all.

A tree’s absorption of carbon dioxide has other key benefits as well, though. Including that it plays a major role in regulating the climate, ensuring that temperatures are not only survivable but usually tolerable and even pleasant. Take the trees away, and you lose this crucial natural mechanism. Greenhouse gas levels would soar as a result, triggering runaway climate change. This also means that extreme weather events would become more and more common, all while rising sea levels would continue unchallenged. The trees stop taking carbon; the world heats up; the ice melts; the waters swell. And all of that combined would pose a severe threat to human civilization. All while almost all other habitats quickly and inescapably degrade, too. 

You might hope that Earth would rejuvenate. In even the most dramatic apocalypse hypotheticals, there’s usually an expectation that the plants, at least, will one day rise again from the ashes. Here, however, even that resurrection is in doubt… mostly because soil erosion would be another big concern. As they are, tree roots anchor soil, maintaining its structure. But, without trees, that structure fails - which is partly what soil erosion is. This would then rapidly accelerate, leading to barren landscapes the world over, the increasing loss of arable land, and an even greater likelihood of even more natural disasters - such as massive landslides and far-reaching floods. If anything on Earth did survive, then the planet that it would wake back up to would be hugely changed.

But, finally, is this scenario really feasible? Certainly the idea of all the trees suddenly dying is quite far-fetched. Short of there emerging some kind of tree-hungry superbug, this isn’t something that’s going to happen anytime soon. However, real-life threats to trees en masse definitely do exist. Deforestation, climate change, wildfires and disease can all contribute to the decline of tree populations. It's therefore vital to proactively address these issues to prevent irreversible damage. And to stop us from turning this seemingly far-off hypothetical into something that could actually unfold.

So, how do we avoid the Apocalypse of Trees? While the natural world says that everything lives and everything dies, in general we could be doing our best to not speed that process along. This means sustainable practices, such as implementing forestry plans which ensure that the harvesting of trees is done in a way that allows for long-term regeneration and minimizes the short-term environmental impact. There are massive economic incentives here, too, as trees and forests contribute significantly to economies worldwide through timber, non-timber forest products, and ecotourism. If we were to cut trees down to the point of them disappearing, then we’d lose all of that - although the aforementioned loss of oxygen would still be the greater problem.

Other ways in which the tree-pocalypse could be dodged include reforestation efforts. Planting trees in deforested areas but doing so in such a way that we are sensitive to precisely what’s needed. As the growing business of rewilding has begun to highlight, simply replacing once-ancient tree groups with monoculture forests of pine, for example, isn’t always the best strategy for success. Meanwhile, conservation is a further area in which everyone can get involved, if they want to. Because if we protect the trees that do remain, then the biodiversity that they support can continue to live.

Thankfully, in the modern world the importance of trees is at least known, even if that knowledge is often ignored. Today, there are widespread campaigns for tree preservation, with environmentalists, scientists, and concerned citizens all rallying to curb deforestation and for a turnaround in tree fortunes. It could be argued that these kinds of behaviors are humanity returning to its roots, in a literal and figurative sense. In cultures and traditions all over the world, trees hold an often sacred place. They’ve served as meeting points in history; they’ve inspired artists and scientists alike; they’re often imbued with mystical powers in mythology and folklore. Perhaps the most famous depiction of trees in modern literature is found with the Ents in J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings”. And for Tolkien, too, the trees serve as guardians, as well as connecting points between nature and sentient beings. The message here is clear: the fate of trees is intertwined with the fate of all life on Earth. The famous “Last March of the Ents” was a rescue mission and then some.

So, what’s your verdict on this alternate reality, but also on how we should view trees in the here and now? Are you involved in tree conservation, or have you just started trying to grow some trees or plants of your own? Let  us know in the comments!

Unfortunately, for all the positive improvements that humankind has made in recent years, decades and centuries… the total loss of trees is more than a mere and fleeting hypothetical. It’s a stark reminder of the importance and fragility of our planet's environment. Trees are the often unsung heroes, holding everything together. So much so that when they are there it’s perhaps easy to take them for granted. To walk or drive past without even registering them. But, if they ever weren’t here, then we’d critically miss them. Because that’s what would happen if all the trees died.