(This is my take on the aforementioned essay topic)
Forests are the ‘givers of life’. They are indeed the ‘lungs of Earth’. The emerald canopy formed the the trees shoot up, reaching a considerable height , they provide not just shade in traditional sense, but become a repository for multiple species to grow , thereby creating a viable and sustainable habitat. While this may not be a replication of brick and mortar civilizational infrastructure that we see today, it is indeed a sustainable developmental ecosystem model that has been working for centuries. This is shelter for dreams and aspirations of countless species, geological formations , and habitat cycles.
Indeed, our history has shown that the lush green haven has fallen victim to the greed expansionist goals of human civilization . On the other hand lies the selfless generosity of forests.Forests are incredible sources of life. They support the environment, help control the climate, and give us many benefits. Their leaves turn sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into oxygen and food through photosynthesis. This process is essential not only for forests but also for all living things, including humans.Forests are incredibly important for life on Earth. They produce oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide, helping to slow climate change. They also manage water by capturing rain, storing it, and slowly releasing it to rivers, which prevents floods and provides clean water. Forests are home to many plants and animals, keeping nature in balance. They also help millions of people by providing food, wood, and other resources, and they hold cultural and spiritual value for communities around the world.
Here comes the issue of forests preceding civilization. Human greed has caused the loss of forests, leading to more deserts and worsening desertification. This happens through deforestation, building large concrete structures, and disrupting the natural balance of ecosystems.
Let’s dive further into the aforementioned process. Human greed has driven extensive deforestation, leading to a significant reduction in forest cover and the creation of desert-like landscapes. As people cut down trees for timber, agriculture, and urban development, the natural balance that forests provide is severely disrupted. Trees play a crucial role in stabilizing the soil, maintaining humidity, and supporting the water cycle. Without their protective cover, the soil becomes loose and vulnerable to erosion by wind and water. Meanwhile, replacing forests with concrete megastructures—such as highways, factories, and cities—further disrupts the land’s ability to absorb rainwater and maintain its fertility. This transformation accelerates desertification, where once-productive land turns dry and barren. The loss of biodiversity and the disruption of the natural ecosystem make it even harder for the land to recover. As a result, human actions—motivated by greed and short-term gain—directly contribute to the spread of deserts and the deterioration of the environment that sustains life on Earth.
”What are we left with?”, you ask. Creation of deserts – man-made deserts with granular sand particles made of greed, selfishness, ignorance ,and instant gratification on part of humans – a mercenary capitalistic mindset that has caused destruction at unprecedented levels.
Let’s us ponder on the constitution of these deserts. Concrete, asphalt, and cement surfaces are a defining feature of urban expansion. These materials prevent water from seeping into the ground, leading to increased runoff, lower groundwater recharge, and reduced soil moisture. This change in water dynamics leaves soils dry and decreases air humidity, creating a drier urban environment.
Urban surfaces like concrete and asphalt soak up heat during the day and radiate it back at night, a phenomenon known as the urban heat island effect. This sustained heat exposure can raise local temperatures by 10 to 15 degrees Celsius compared to greener areas, drying out soils, accelerating water evaporation, and reducing air moisture—conditions that resemble desert-like microclimates.
Construction often clears away vegetation, exposing bare soil to wind and traffic. Without plant cover to stabilize it, this loose soil becomes easily airborne, leading to increased dust in urban areas and further contributing to the dry, harsh conditions typical of urban deserts.Urban development often involves clearing forests, grasslands, and wetlands, removing vegetation that naturally cools and humidifies the air through transpiration. This loss of trees and plants disrupts the evaporative cooling process and leaves the soil more vulnerable to erosion, leading to increased dust and contributing to desert-like conditions. Simultaneously, construction activities divert water through drains and sewers, preventing rainwater from seeping into the ground and reducing groundwater recharge. Paved-over streams and floodplains disrupt local ecosystems that rely on natural water flow, further drying the landscape. Additionally, construction generates significant dust and particulate pollution that can block sunlight, coat leaves, and trap heat, intensifying the urban heat island effect. The combination of vegetation loss, impermeable surfaces, water cycle disruption, and air pollution creates a chain reaction: from soil exposure and heat accumulation to higher runoff and less infiltration, transforming once-green areas into urban deserts. Urban sprawl and high resource demands exacerbate this process, fragmenting habitats and consuming water and sand, which intensifies the hot, dry conditions typical of urban environments.
Let us analyze this from another vantage point, that being battles and wars that have reached an unprecedented levels of destruction, involving weaponry that completely decimated the civilizational structures, leaving rubble and slabs of concrete , out of shape rotting iron and steel, pulverized rock , tanks and shells in its wake. The contaminated soil , soaking the poisonous chemicals has deep and deadly ramifications for ecosystem. Rivers, streams , and ponds are contaminated, leading to death sentence hanging on the existence of species depending on it.Bombing often damages drainage systems and creates large craters in the ground, which can block the natural flow of water. This stops rainwater from soaking into the soil and refilling underground water supplies. Smoke and fumes from fires, bombs, and cars make the air hotter. This adds to the heat already trapped in cities and makes areas that have been hit by war even hotter and drier, turning them into places that look like deserts.
Thus, it is clear that deserts and wastelands follow the creations and progression of unsustainable civilizations which are nothing but concrete forests with roots of greed deeply entrenched in soil of human selfishness and rising branches of uncontrolled rate of human population growth that is absolutely unviable and unstable.
Simplified Learning UPSC by Tanu 
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