Deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest

Deforestation in the Amazon

• Deforestation encompasses the burning desire for economic expansion and ecological preservation

About the Amazon Rainforest

• The Amazon rainforest is a moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome
• It covers most of the Amazon basin of South America
• The Amazon rainforest is also called Amazon jungle or Amazonia or the Lungs of the Earth
• The rainforest holds 20% of the earth's oxygen emissions

What is Deforestation?

• Deforestation is clearing a forest or a large area of trees to make space for other land uses
• Other Land uses include agriculture, commercial development, or urbanisation
• The rate of deforestation is most severe in the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil

Why is Deforestation a Concern?

• Tropical rainforests regulate the Earth's climate, support biodiversity, and provide essential resources for human survival
• The Amazon Rainforest is home to millions of plant and animal species
• The Amazon Rainforest produces around 20% of the world's oxygen

Man-Made Causes - Unchecked Agricultural Expansion

• Agriculture accounts for about 27% of all forest loss worldwide
• Illegal and unmitigated farming techniques are used to clear land for growing or harvesting commodities
• Commodities include soy, palm oil, gold, sugarcane, and beef
• Deforestation depletes forest cover and increases the risk of fire
• More than 20% of the forest in Mato Grosso (a Brazilian state) was converted to cropland by 2003

Man-Made Causes - Illegal and Unmitigated Gold Mining

• Mining contributes to the economies of South American countries.
• Brazil showed two moments of garimpo dominance over industrial mining from 1989–1997 and 2019-2022
• Industrial mining sites occupied ~ 360 km² in 1985 increasing to 1800 km² in 2022, a 5-fold increase
• Garimpo mining area increased by ~ 1200%, from~ 218 km² in 1985 to ~ 2627 km² in 2022
• Over 91% of mining activity is concentrated in the Amazon

Man-Made Causes - Poorly-Planned Infrastructure

• Poorly-conceived roads escalate pressure on the Amazon by giving a gateway to remote forests
• The Trans-Amazonian Highway stretches 4,000 kilometers across Brazil, connecting the coastal city of João Pessoa to the northeast border of Peru
• The Highway first opened in 1972
• Highway construction has had interruptions due to lack of funding and other issues
• Deforestation levels spiked following the highway's construction,

Man-Made Causes - Cattle Ranching

• Deforestation caused by cattle ranching is supported by an international demand for cattle-related products
• Cattle-related products include leather, meat, dairy, and cosmetics
• Low costs drive deforestation through cattle-ranching inputs, such as breeding bulls or cows, fencing, artificial feed, medicine, and labor
• Other driving factors include the ease of transportation and inexpensive land
• The government of Brazil had incentives for many years to increase land usage and ownership through cattle and clearing land

Natural Causes

• Climate Change and Wildfires
• Climate change affects global weather patterns, warmer and dryer periods leads to new stresses and devasting yearly fire seasons
• Decreased resilience of ecosystems accelerates the Amazon's decline
• Fire signals deforestation as forests are felled and burned for ranching and farming
• In 2019, over 20 million acres of the Amazon faced decimation from fires

Environmental Impacts of Deforestation

• Loss of Biodiversity occurs where the lush forest houses around 10% of the world's species.
• Alarmingly, estimates are 137 plant, animal, and insect species are lost daily due to deforestation
• Over 5,000 species are lost each year.
• Species diversity could decline by 30-45% by 2030 in some parts of the Amazon Rainforest
• Deforestation disrupts the Nutrient Cycle
• Approximately 80% of the rainforest's nutrients come from its vegetation
• Cutting down trees halts natural recycling of vegetation leaving the soil depleted
• Grazing and plantations worsen the soil condition, turning once fertile lands barren

Social and Economic Impacts of Deforestation

• Deforestation causes displacement of Indigenous Peoples
• The Yanomami and Kayapo tribes have lived harmoniously with the rainforest for thousands of years
• Tribe Survival is threatened
• In 1900 there were 330 tribes compared to 240 tribes remaining today
• Roads, logging, reservoirs, ranches, and mines have displaced Indigenous peoples
• Governance and Policy Failures occur
• Illegal logging and mining continue, due to regulations, corruption and poor law enforcement

Solutions Attempted

• Environmental laws Forest Code assist prevent deforestation
• The United Nations' REDD+ program aims to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries
• Environmental licenses are required for certain activities in the Amazon's
• The Brazilian government implemented Land use Laws Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Amazon (PPCDAm) in 2004 to reduce illegal deforestation
• The PPCDAm focuses on land use planning, environmental monitoring, and sustainable production
• Public Forest Management law helps protect the Amazon rainforest

Outcomes

• Deforestation has fallen significantly in the Brazilian Amazon as a result of many measures
• In 2004, the figure of annual forest loss reached 27,700 km2 reducing to 4,500 km2 by 2012
• There was a reduction of almost 84%
• Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon drops almost 31% compared to previous year
• Amazon deforestation in Brazil plummets 31% to lowest level in 9 years
• In 2023, the deforestation rate halved.
• President Lula pledged to end deforestation in the Amazon by 2030