Deforestation in Brasil Causes of Deforestation in Brazil

Deforestation in Brasil

Causes of Deforestation in Brazil. • 1. Intensive agriculture, e. g. Soya plantations and cattle ranching. • 2. Logging • 3. Demand for wood as fuel • 4. Construction of large dams and reservoirs drown forest • 5. Mining and industry clear forest to reach minerals. • 6. Government-organised forest colonisation schemes clear forest for farming.

AVANCA BRASIL Government Policy to use the resources of the Rainforest to develop Brazil's economy

These activities are occurring because of the following 4 problems in Brazil social (people) and economic (money)

Problems 1. Overpopulation and poverty in Brazilian cities creates political difficulties. 2. The government wants to open up the Brazilian rainforest to take advantage of its timber and mineral wealth. 3. Beef producers require more land to herd massive numbers of cattle for the beef trade. 4. Brazilian industry requires more power if it is to develop and maintain its industrial strength.

These 4 things meant that the government began to encourage poor people from the cities to live in the forest and clear it for farming. In some cases, land was given away. This destroyed even more of the forest!

1. Logging of timber 1. Timber companies were given rights to remove forest and sell timber abroad. 2. The Brazilian government receives a portion of the timber companies’ profits and uses it to pay off international debts.

2. Illegal timber • Illegal cutting of timber is also leading to rapid deforestation, fuelled by demand for cheap tropical timber all over the world. • 80% of all the timber cut down is illegally cut down 3. Mining • Also the area is rich in resources so land was sold to mining companies to clear forests and mine for metals such as iron ore and copper.

4. Roads 1. Roads are being built across the Amazon rainforest to allow 2. 3. 4. 5. access to logging companies, mining companies, soya plantations, cattle ranches and hydroelectric power (HEP) stations. To construct these roads, large areas of forest were cleared. The longest road is the Trans-Amazonian Highway, a 5, 300 km road, built across Brazil from east to west. The highway was designed to help settlement and exploration of resources in this vast under-populated river basin. It has allowed the movement of people and goods to hard to get areas

5. Brasilia 1. A new capital city, Brasilia, was built from scratch during the 1960’s in the Amazon rainforest. 2. This was to encourage people to live away from the cities in Brasil 3. It has a population of 2. 3 million. 4. To construct this city, large areas of forests were cleared. 5. More deforestation occurred on the outskirts of the city where small, temporary housing settlements were built for migrant workers who moved to this area in order to build the city. 6. Instead of returning to their original homes when the city was completed these workers chose to stay and live next to Brasilia.

6. Electricity An unlimited water supply and ideal river conditions led to the development of many HEP stations. • Over 125 new HEP stations have been built in the Brazilian rainforest area. • One example is the Tucurui Dam which caused over 2, 500 km² of rainforest to be flooded. • More than 8, 000 people lost their homes and thousands of animals died.

7. Avanca In January 2000, the Brazilian government announced its plans for Avanca Brasil (Advance Brazil). • This was a € 30 billion plan to cover much of the Amazon rainforest with 10, 000 km of highways, hydroelectric dams, power lines, mines, gas and oilfields, canals, ports, logging concessions and other industrial developments.

8. Soya The expansion of soya farming in Brazil is contributing to the loss of 40 hectares of rainforest every minute, day and night. The rate of forest clearance is driven by the increasing worldwide demand for soya and its products.