Deforestation Case Study — Amazon Rainforest

Question 1

Location

Answer 1

Amazon covers areas of Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana

Question 2

Causes: Farming

Answer 2

Subsistence: 20-25%
Commercial: 5-10%
Land cleared for soy, rice, sugarcane plantations
Slash and burn technique

Question 3

Causes: Logging

Answer 3

2-3%

Often illegal, so hard to control, from high prices of timber

Question 4

Causes: Cattle Ranching

Answer 4

65-70%

Livestock takes up lots of space, slash and burn technique

Question 5

Causes: Other (1-2%)

Answer 5

• Mineral extraction (eg, iron or, gold)
• Population growth (building infrastructure and housing)
• Road building (opens more areas to deforestation)
• Hydroelectric power (water reservoirs and dams)

Question 6

Impacts: Environmental

Answer 6

Amazon stored 100 billion tonnes of carbon;
Deforestation —> stored CO2 released —> greenhouse effect —> global warming;
Brazil loses ± 55 million tonnes of top soil/year —> soil erosion from crop cultivation and overgrazing

Question 7

Impacts: Economic

Answer 7

Farming = money —> 2008, $6.9 billion for cattle ranching;
Mining industry = jobs —> Peru, Buenaventura company employs 3100 people;
Logging —> money to Brazilian government