The Forest Buddies |
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Save The Forests, Save Our Lives |
| The Amazon rainforest – A case study |
| Introduction Do you know how important Brazil is to all of us? About a third of Earth’s remaining tropical rainforest is found in the Amazon Basin which produces approximately a fifth of Earth’s oxygen. The importance of the Amazon rainforest How else is the Amazon important? It is part of the water cycle and it determines the rainfall around and in the forested region. Furthermore, carbon is sequestered by the trees in the forest as they take in carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. This reduces global warming. It also supports a great biodiversity. Reasons for deforestation Why is there a need for deforestation here? The main reasons for deforestation are ranching and farming. Other causes include logging and development. Effects of large scale agriculture One of the main reasons for clearing land here is to grow soybeans. Soybeans require large amounts acid-neutralising lime, fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. These are known to poison water and aquatic life too. These may be toxic to their land and their farm animals may die. Reflection What have we learnt from this lesson? The political will to reserve the forests has to be really strong and the management of forests has to be given top priority. A balance must be struck between improving the economy and saving the forests. Indigenous people have a right to their ancestral land. It may be too late to discover one day that "the lungs of the earth" are gone and there is no fresh air for us to breathe nor fresh water for us to drink. This will not only affect us but future generations to come. Illegal logging must be prevented at all cost. Perhaps educating all children from young about the importance of forests will heighten the awareness about the dilemma faced by uncontrolled deforestation. Population control aimed at decreasing the demand for more land for farming development will also have an important role. We also hope that governments will have sound forest laws that will protect the forests by controlling deforestation. |
| Sources: |
| Goh Cheng Leong. (1998). Forests and Us. (p. 55-63). Singapore: Federal Publications. |