Tree Cutting in the Rainforests

The Amazon rain forest is the most biologically diverse area of the world, full of animals and plant species, both discovered and undiscovered. There are also many tribes living throughout the forest that have never been in contact with modern humans or development. At the same time, this place is being destroyed. Many farmers and businessmen have been using the rain forest as a location to farm and log. The area has been logged by clear-cutting for years, removing the habitat needed for most of the animals and tribesmen to survive.

Road Construction

• The largest effects on the rain forest from an environmental standpoint have been due to road construction. Roads have been cut through the rain forest in order to help out poor farmers in the area to gain some land to live off. Unfortunately, the roads have not done much good. Instead, they have allowed everyone from poor farmers to illegal loggers to have access to the precious land of the rain forest. These people do not often utilize the land conscientiously, and have been destroying the area from the inside out.

Logging

• Logging is one of the most strictly regulated uses of the rain forest, but there is a lot of illegal activity associated with it. Many places are set aside for “selective logging” where you can only cut down a certain amount. This usually leads to full deforestation of the area, because it allows other people to come in and cut down more for themselves.

Pasturelands

• Clearing the land for cattle has continued to be the most popular reason behind tree cutting in the rain forest. Brazilian beef continues to rise in price and in popularity in Europe. It is free of hoof-and-mouth disease, so it is a safe option to export. It is very easy to claim land when you have some cattle. All you have to do is clear the space and place your cattle on it, and then use the land for one year and one day. After five years, the land becomes yours and you can sell it. Many poor farmers in Brazil take advantage of this law, and choose cattle because they are reliable and easy to manage.

Agriculture

• Agriculture is another major problem in the rain forest, and farmers cut trees from large areas to farm. They farm one type of crop for a few years, until the land becomes infertile. Then, they leave that land behind and move to a new section of forest. Commercial agriculture is focused mostly on soybean production in the Amazon. These farms take up great tracts of land, but also push the smaller subsistence farmers deeper into the forest, adding greatly to the damage of the overall forest.

Threatened Species

• It is almost impossible to understand which species of plants and animals are being threatened because many of the organisms in the rain forest have yet to be discovered. Some may have become extinct before ever being found. The many tribes that live throughout the forest are also fighting for survival.