Logging Characterization

Deforestation Rates

Main page:  http://www.brazil.org.uk/index.php
    The Brazilian Embasy in London

*specific useful page:  http://www.brazil.org.uk/page.php?cid=465
    This page specifically looked at the future of the rainforest, and made references to the article listed after this.

In the past few years, the deforestation rates have varied between 1.3 million ha and 1.8 million ha.  It has been listed by the Brazilian Embassy in London:

 1995-96:  1.8 million ha
 1996-97:  1.3 million ha
 1997-98:  1.7 million ha
 1998-99:  1.7 million ha

This information was found by the Brazilian Embassy through the INPE’s site:  www.grid.inpe.br
 
 

Causes of Deforestation

Main page:  http://www.sciencemag.org/

-specific useful page:  http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/291/5503/438
    This was where the specific article from Science Magazine was found.
The article was "The Future of the Brazilian Amazon" by William F. Laurance, Mark A. Cochrane, Scott Bergen, Philip M. Fearnside,Patricia Delamônica, Christopher Barber, Sammya D'Angelo, and Tito Fernandes.

-another useful sub page:  http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/291/5503/438/DC1
    This was an a supplementary part to the article.
 

The main causes of deforestation are loosely put as follows:

                * These activities require roads built to access these areas, which will in turn increase access to more areas that will then be destroyed as well, and the cycle continues of increasing roads, removing the resources, and then increasing the roads even more.
                * Not only are these roads spreading at a quick rate, they are located in a completely different place as the usual deforestation was occurring.  Usually, most of the deforestation would be in the highly populated southern and eastern areas.  Now, because of the increased logging, colonization, and number of roads, most of the deforestation is occurring in the heart of the Amazon, which accounts for more fragmentation.
                * The logging and mining industries must create roads to gain access to their desired resources.  These roads allow easier access to ranchers, “slash and burn” farmers, and hunters, who destroy the land further.  The basic reason that the loggers use the Amazon is to obtain the vast amounts of tropical timber.  The miners are after minerals such as gold, copper, bauxite, and iron ore, as well as petroleum, and natural gas.                   Back to Main                     Contact me!