US Latin America Rainforest

From WolfWikis

Brazil's immense area is subdivided into different ecosystems, which together sustain some of the world's greatest biodiversity. Due to the relatively explosive economic and demographic rise of the country in the last century, Brazil's ability to protect its environmental habitats has increasingly come under threat. Extensive logging in the nation's forests, particularly the Amazon, both official and unofficial, destroys areas the size of a small country, and a diverse variety of plants and animals each year.^[1]

Brazil has arguably the highest number of both terrestrial vertebrates and invertebrates of any country in the world. Brazil has the highest primate diversity of any country in the world. It also claims the highest number of mammals, the second highest number of amphibians and butterflies, the third highest number of birds, and the fifth number of reptiles.^[2] All of these creatures live in an ecosystem threated by several hauman activities.

Brazil's environment is under threat because of the country's quick economic and demographic rise. Between 2002 and 2006, an area of the Amazon Rainforest the size of South Carolina was completely decimated, for the purposes of raising cattle and woodlogging. By 2020, it is estimated that at least 50% of the species resident in Brazil will become extinct.^[3]

The Amazon Rainforest

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Brazilian Economics Affecting the Rainforest

[1] [2]

The Politics of Conservation

The welfare of a country's ecosystems directly relates to the nature of its political regimes. Political leaders assume responsibility for their citizens future and the future of their country's ecology as well.

Chronology of Brazilian Political Leaders since 1822:

1822 Brazil achieved its independence from Portugal. Dom Pedro became the first Emperor of Brazil.

1840 Pedro II crowned Emperor.

1889 Pedro II depposed by a Republican military coup led by general Deodoro da Fonseca.

1930 A military junta took control. Provisional President Getúlio Dorneles Vargas ruled as a dictator.

1934 Getúlio Dorneles Vargas became the first congressionally elected President.

1937 Getúlio Dorneles Vargas ruled as a dictator.

1945 José Linhares appointed Provisional President.

1946 Eurico Gaspar Dutra elected President of Brazil.

1951 Getúlio Dorneles Vargas re-elected President.

1954 João Café Filho elected President.

1956 Juscelino Kubitschek's elected President.

1961 Jânio da Silva Quadros elected President.

1961 Pascoal Ranieri Mazzilli appointed Provisional President.

1961 João Goulart elected President.

1964-1985 Military forces take control of Brazil.

1985-90 Tancredo Neves elected President. Died before taking office. Vice-president, José Sarney, sworn in as President.

1988 Democracy re-established in with the Federal Constitution.

1990 Fernando Collor de Mello was the first president elected by popular vote.

1992 Itamar Franco assumes presidency after de Mello's impeachment.

1994 Fernando Henrique Cardoso elected President.

1998 Fernando Henrique Cardoso re-elected President.

2002 Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva elected President.

2006 Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva re-elected President.

The Effects of Political Change

Decades of shifting administrations in Brazil porduced several tendencies leading to the decline of the Amazonian rain forest. The shift from military rule to Democratic rule during the 1970's and 1980's generated the most radical changes in the Brazilian rainforest.

The Modern Period of Brazilian Development (1985-present)

Urbanization

Brasil adopted a significantly aggressive policy of domestic development after the 21-year period of military rule (1964-1985). The creation and growth of urban areas in the Amazon has engendered new local and regional markets for livestock products, timber, and certain agricultural crops. Because most agricultural goods produced in the Amazon Basin as a whole continue to be sold within the region, changes in consumption patterns can influence prices and hence the profitability of agricultural production. Given that livestock products and timber both have highly positive income elasticities in the Amazon, as incomes rise, demand for these products will probably grow even more rapidly.^[4]

• Between 1976 and 1998, timber production in the Brazilian Amazon multiplied from 4.5million cubic meters to 28 million cubic meters.^[5]

• More than 80 percent of the deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon between 1991 and 1994 occurred within fifty kilometers of four major road networks.^[6]

• Environmentalists expressed major concern about recent government plans to construct and improve roads and ports in several Amazonian countries including Brasil.^[7]

Decentralization

The new Brazilian constitution approved in 1998 greatly increased the powers and revenues of state and municipal governments. Federal fiscal transfers to municipal governments in the Brazilian Amazon have converted the municipalities into a major economic and political force. Now local governments are by far the largest single employer in most Amazon municipalities, and the fact that most municipal income comes from federal transfers places them in the enviable position of being able to distribute benefits without having to tax.

Increased local influence over road construction, agricultural credit, land tenure, and regulatory issues is likely to favor elite interests and encourage deforestation. It is also argued that because the costs of conservation are largely local and the benefits largely national and global, putting power in the hands of local authorities will generally result in less support for conservation and sustainable forest management and greater pressure for road building and subsidized credit. ^[8]

• Some scholars contest that since large ranchers and loggers control many of the state and municipal governments in the Brazilian Amazon, future municipla actions will be anti-forest but anti-indigenous and anti-small farmer.^[9]

Indigenous Peoples

As of July 1999, Brazil demarcated 352 indigenous territories covering 760,000 square kilometers. By 2005, Sixty-four more territories covering 213,000 square kilometers would be demarcated. The total area involved is almost as large as all of Bolivia.^[10] These indigenous groups generally practice production systems more compatible with the long-term conservation of forest cover and often have strong incentives to avoid encroachment by outsiders. However,Indigenous tribes have often proved willing to allow loggers to harvest timber from their lands for minimal compensation.^[11]

International Efforts: Getting Involved in Rain Forest Protection

As rain forest acreage dwindles the urgency of international aid is recognized. Latin America contains much of the world's rain forests. Currently, thousands of acres disappear yearly. Unfortunately, the countries that contain most of the world's rain forests are also the poorest or economically unstable. The worlds rain forest house many species of plants and animals unknown to inhabit any other part of the world. The rain forest also has a climate unique only to that area, but it's impact on the worlds climate. Global climate is a huge reason for the governments of the world to come together and discuss efforts to preserve the rain forests all over the world.

5 Basic Steps Towards Saving the Rain Forests -- "TREES"[3]

• Teach others about the importance of the environment and how they can help save rain forests.
• Restore damaged ecosystems by planting trees on land where forests have been cut down.
• Encourage people to live in a way that doesn't hurt the environment.
• Establish parks to protect rainforest's and wildlife.
• Support companies that operate in ways that minimize damage to the environment.

South America has the largest raiforest region in the world

International Preservation and Conservation Organizations:

• Conservation International: [4]
• Take an online Eco-Footprint Quiz: [5]

• Convention on Biological Diversity [6] (Interesting to note that the United States, Iraq, and Somalia are not part of this group.)

• Global Environmental Facility [7]

Other organizations Involved in Preservation

Many international groups share the opinion that through elevating the poverty levels in many Latin American countries they will simultaneously reverse the loss of biodiversity. This idea conveys a strong economy will thrive from a strong environment, in addition posing the argument that through conserving the environment the economy will grow, thusly, creating a "win, win" situation.

Poison Dart Frog

World Bank

• Aid to Costa Rica: [8]

• Further describes the World Bank's intent for strengthening the economy:[9]

International Monetary Fund [10]

This article written by Ved Ghandi explains why the IMF is concerned with environmental affairs and their efforts at supporting the environment from an international economies perspective.

UN Environmental Program[11]

This page gives good facts about Latin America and their forest coverage, as well and concrete ideas for policy.

More facts from the UN [12] Conservation.org

Other useful and informaitve sites (Bibliography/Sources) Great source on the future of ethanol production and use in Brazil. This site was extremely useful in opening my eyes to an obvious situation that could have deavstating effects on this fertile biome.[13]

This site gives us a very interesting theory about how globalization could actually save the Rain forest. I believe it is necessary to explore all options and this was a very different and interesting theory on how to tackle this problem.[14]

The BBC provides what I believe a middle of the line approach to many issues. Here they report of the environmentally devasting techniques used in farming and mining in Brazil. [15]

This site was interesting in providing information on how the Amazon gets essential minerals from The Bodele valley in northern Chad by way of storms crossing the Atlantic Ocean.[16]

Mongabay's website gives a very thourough analysis of whats going on with the Amazon as far as portection and destruction. The statistics shown here are probably the most reliable.[17]

This site acts as a very simple and useful fact sheet.It provides many statistics and projections about the Amazon. [18]

This clip shows the devastation of constructing super highways through the rainforest in hopes of developing ifrastructure. [19]

Places to visit and learn how you can get involved:

MongoBay.com

World Wild Life.org

[http://web.conservation.org/xp/CIWEB/getinvolved/ Conservation

Sources

1. ↑ USDA Forest Service website, Forest Service International Programs: Brazil, retrieved February 2007.
2. ↑ Marco Lambertini (2000). A Naturalist's Guide to the Tropics.
3. ↑ National Academic Press website (1998).
4. ↑ Merle D. Faminow. Cattle, Deforestation, and Development in the Amazon: An Economic, Agronomic, and Environmental Perspective, Wallingford, Conn.: CAB International Publishers, 1998.
5. ↑ Uma Lele, Virgho Viana, Adalberto Verissimo, Stephen Vosti, Karin Perkins, and Syed Arif Husain. Brazil, Forests in the Balance: Challenges of Conservation with Development, Washington, D.C.: World Bank Operations Evaluation Department, 2000. p.24
6. ↑ Uma Lele, Virgho Viana, Adalberto Verissimo, Stephen Vosti, Karin Perkins, and Syed Arif Husain. Brazil, Forests in the Balance: Challenges of Conservation with Development, Washington, D.C.: World Bank Operations Evaluation Department, 2000. p.42.
7. ↑ David Kaimowitz. "Amazon Deforestation Revisited," Latin American Research Review, Vol. 37, No. 2. (2002), p.230.
8. ↑ Uma Lele, Virgho Viana, Adalberto Verissimo, Stephen Vosti, Karin Perkins, and Syed Arif Husain. Brazil, Forests in the Balance: Challenges of Conservation with Development, Washington, D.C.: World Bank Operations Evaluation Department, 2000.
9. ↑ David Kaimowitz. "Amazon Deforestation Revisited," Latin American Research Review, Vol. 37, No. 2. (2002), p.233
10. ↑ Uma Lele, Virgho Viana, Adalberto Verissimo, Stephen Vosti, Karin Perkins, and Syed Arif Husain. Brazil, Forests in the Balance: Challenges of Conservation with Development, Washington, D.C.: World Bank Operations Evaluation Department, 2000. p.68
11. ↑ David Kaimowitz. "Amazon Deforestation Revisited," Latin American Research Review, Vol. 37, No. 2. (2002), p.230.