Value & Importance
Tundras are important because they have specific species and plants that can only grow in these regions. Without these regions we wouldn't have Arctic Fox- "Aloplex Lagopus" or Caribou- "Rangifer tarandus"- Reindeer. We also would have a hard time finding plants like Arctic Moss , Arctic Willow, Bearberry , or Caribou Moss. The areas Tundras are typically found in areas that contain a lot of methane. The methane lies under the permafrost of the soil. When the permafrost melts, large amounts of permafrost will be let into the atmosphere and heat up the earth. This biome is also good for a vacation site, because there are so few areas like this certain spots contain large amounts of tourism. This helps towns make some easy money and keep their economy going.
Human Impacts
Global warming caused by greenhouse gases is a major threat to the permafrost in parts of the tundra region. This process causes the emission of more carbon dioxide and methane to be released from the melting arctic surfaces into the atmosphere, accelerating the rate of global warming. Due to this, the polar ice caps are melting at an alarmingly fast rate. Polar bears have been found dead in the ocean because the ice is breaking from the melting permafrost. Because of the short growing season, the vegetation and soil recover very slowly from damages. This being said, human activities such as oil drilling sites, pipelines, and mines all cause habitat fragmentation and disrupt fragile ecosystems in the tundra biome.
What can we do?
We can switch to more alternative energy to decrease human impacts on global warming. We can also establish more protected areas and park reserves to limit human influence on habitats. Finally we can also limit tourism and road construction, specifically in already fragile ecosystems.