Before giving your own opinion, it is necessary to show that
you have read the relevant sources and have studied the
evidence. Opinions without evidence have little value.
The following paragraph discusses the environmental
effects of deforestation.
Lomborg (2001) claims that the danger of extinction of
species has been exaggerated. He says that the number
of species had been expected to decline dramatically
within the next half century, but maintains that this is
unlikely: ‘Species . . . seem more resilient than expected.’
He points out that in the eastern USA, although 98% of
the original forests have been cleared, only one forest bird
became extinct in the process. Against this, Brooks (2001)
feels that Lomborg is ignoring the true rate of forest loss
and the related extinction of species: ‘The ongoing wave
of extinctions, due primarily to deforestation in the moist
tropics, has been widely documented.’ It seems that
Lomborg, as a statistician, is too dependent on optimistic
data, and is ignoring the widespread concerns of wildlife
experts.