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Dictation
Disappearing Forests
The world’s forests are disappearing. As much as a third of the total tree cover has been lost since agriculture began some 10,000 years ago. The remaining forests are home to half of the world’s species thus becoming the chief resource for their survival. Tropical rain forests once covered twelve percent of the land of the planet. As well as supporting at least half of the world’s species of plants and animals, these rain forests are home to millions of people. But there are other demands on them. For example, much has been cut for timber. An increasing amount of forestland has been used for industrial purposes or for agricultural development, such as crop growing. By the 1990s less that half of the earth’s original rain forests remained, and they continues to disappear at an alarming rate every year. As a result, the world’s forests are now facing gradual extinction.
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