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People
use forests for hiking, camping, photography, and
bird-watching. Trees planted in our communities help
make our streets, schools, and yards more beautiful.
And trees are fun to climb and play in!
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Why are trees important?
Trees are important to people and
our environment in many ways. They provide precious
habitat for birds, squirrels, insects, and other
creatures. Their branches provide natural shade
for houses, animals, and smaller plants, and they
help control erosion by holding soil in place. The
leaves they drop in autumn decompose into new soil
that's rich in nutrients. Their leaves and roots
act as natural filters to cleanse particles from
the air and water. And trees remove carbon dioxide
from the air while adding valuable oxygen to our
atmosphere.
Trees are important to people in other
ways, too. They provide the raw material for thousands
of valuable products. Wood is used for building
materials and furniture, and wood fiber is made
into paper products. Even wood chemicals are valuable.
These natural oils and resins are used to make products
we all rely on, such as medicines (like asthma and
cough remedies), detergents, cosmetics, vitamin
tablets, soap, roofing shingles, food flavorings,
and toothpaste!
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