Amazon Rainforest Flashcards
What is an ecosystem
A natural system which links together the living and non-living environment
What is ‘emergent’ and what lives there
tops of tallest trees (60m tall) birds and insects live here
what is the canopy and what lives there
Primary layer, 45m high, filters 80% of the light, monkeys, snakes and tree frogs
What is the understory and what lives there
Only 5% light, plants have dark green lives with lots of chlorophyll. Snake jaguars
What is the forest floor and what lives there
Only 2% light so few plants, covered with rapidly decomposing plants and organisms . large mammals, tapirs, termites
What are the farming reasons for deforestation ( 3 )
1/ Slash and burn
2/ subsistence farming
3/ Commercial cattle ranching
Explain: slash and burn
Method used for forest clearance which makes the ground infertile
Explain: subsistence farming
Land cleared when government gave land to 25 million people
Explain: commercial cattle ranching
Large transportational companies sell beef mainly to fast food chains, burning forest and replacing it with grass
What is the transport reason for deforestation
over 12000km of new roads been built, largest being 5300km. These roads built to timber, minerals mines
How much, percentile wise, of the rainforest has been destroyed since 1960
40%
What is the settlement reason for deforestation
Increase in population means new housing is required
What are the resources reasons for deforestation ( 3 )
1/ Timber
2/ Minerals
3/ Hydro-electricity
Explain: timber
mainly hard wood cut down by logging companies with little effort to replant
Explain: Minerals
Including iron ore, bauxite, diamonds, gold and silver
Explain: Hydro-electricitiy
Is an important renewable resource but the building of large dams and lakes has caused areas of forest to flood
What are the effects of deforestation here? ( 6 )
1/ Habitats of animals destroyed, extinction following
2/ Reduction in Amerindians - ancient cultural people
3/ No canopy to protect soil from heavy afternoon rain - leads to soil erosion
4/ rivers polluted die to mining operations
5/ Causing climate change
6/ Change in the composition of the atmosphere - 1/3 of the oxygen comes from the rainforest
Explain how it causes climate change
less evapotransipration meaning there’s less moisture in the water cycle leading to droughts. Burning of forest release CO2
What are the sustainable solutions to the problem ( 7 )
1/ Selective logging 2/ Replanting 3/ Reducing demand for hardwood 4/ Education of the issue 5/ Ecotourism 6/ Reducing debt 7/ Protection
Explain: selective logging
Only the oldest trees cut down,
Explain: Replanting
New trees plant to replace old ones, there will be trees for people to use in the future.
Why is it important to replant the same type of tree
So that the variety of trees is kept for the future
Explain: Reducing demand for hardwood
Hardwood is the main used wood for things such as furniture, reducing demand would mean less is cut down
Explain: Education of the issue
Some local people don’t know what the environmental impacts are, they just try to make money. Also educating them about other ways to make money.
Explain: ecotourism
Ecotourism provides money for local people and does not harm the environment
Explain: Reducing debt
Reducing debt means that the poorer people do not have to log, farm or mine
Explain: protection
Environmental laws protecting the forests by, banning the use of wood from forests that are managed non-sustainably, banning illegal logging. set up national parks
