Student 26

IDST 2205 (01)

Oct. 4, 1999

 

                                                                Rainforest Summit

 

Each and every year more and more of our worlds rare and spectacular rainforests are disappearing from the face of our planet.  Everyday, as more and more trees fall, many other precious and valuable things fall with them.  These lost valuables are things we survive on and enjoy daily on our earthly planet.  Working as an environmentalist, I study this destruction of our rainforest and the effects it is having on our planet everyday.  While all of this destruction is bad, the worst of all is the deforestation of these tropical forests.  This has negative effects on the native animals and plants, native people and tribes, as well as irreplaceable effects of our world=s climate.  As an environmentalist, I believe that as long as these indigenous people continue to clear out our tropical rainforest, there will be a great loss in our natural environment.  We will lose not only rare animals, important vegetation, and possible human life, but we may also lose some of the oldest living forests in the world. 

 

The deforestation of the rainforest is reeking havoc on many parts of the environment, but one of the biggest problems arising from this deforestation is the destruction of animal and plant life.  Despite the fact that the rainforests are home to some of the earth=s tallest and oldest trees and a dazzling collection of fish and wildlife, much of these tropical rainforest have been, or may become, victim of the fastest chainsaw massacre in history.  More than half of all species on the planet live in the rainforest.  With nearly 17 million hectares of rainforest lost worldwide each year, there may be no rainforest to support these animals and plants in the future.  Animals such as large cats, monkeys, majestic birds, and insects, to name a few, all thrive on these tropical forests for shelter and food, while plants and other types of vegetation live on the water and the soil from these forests.  With this in mind, it should be clear to everybody that this depletion of these rainforests will have devastating effects on much of the world=s wildlife.  While the loss of these magnificent animals and plants is horrible, there could be something even worse in store for our society because of this destruction of plant life.  For many years there have been many medicine drugs that have evolved from these tropical plants.  Today, though, there are more than ever.  A few of these products that are being taken from these plants are Provir, which is an oral treatment for respiratory viral infections, Virend, which is a treatment for the herpes simplex virus.  A more recent finding of an antifungal agent that is being used to make a product that treats thrush, a fungal infection of the mouth, esophagus, and gastrointestinal tract.  There has also been two other tropical plants found that exhibit special binding properties that raise the prospect of creating a nonaddictive pain-relief drug.  Everyday people live by these medicines and others just like them but do not realize what important and rare plants help produce them.  At the rate at which these tropical rainforests are being destroyed today, there will be fewer and fewer plants with these potential medicine properties around for our future generations.  By preserving these rainforest plants there could be even greater medical findings such as medicines that could cure rare forms of cancers, and possibly a cure for the deadly aids virus.

 

Another devastating factor to the deforestation of the earth=s rainforests is the local farming.  Each day more families in these tropical regions are clear-cutting these rainforests themselves in order to have cattle ranches and crop farms.  Today, seventy-two percent of all rainforest destruction is a result of farming.  In some cases, this is worse than what timber companies are doing because all that is truly being gained from this is empty and useless land.  This may be more justified for very poor families, but their problem is the lack of farming technology.  With the help of newer technology, it would reduce the amount of land that poor families need to reclaim from forests to feed themselves.  Some environmentalist have helped a few poor farmers to adopt several simple improvements, such as planting their crops in rows rather than scattering seed everywhere, and using hoes for weeding purposes.  Many of these farmers will always have and need some amount of farm land, but the less land they have to use is more rainforest land saved.

 

While this rainforest destruction is taking a toll on many of our earth=s continents, there may be even greater destruction happening to our worlds climate because of this deforestation.  Many people have not acknowledged this simply because it is unseen, but the truth of the matter is that it is happening day by day at an alarming rate.  There are a number of key roles that the Amazon Basin plays on the earth=s climate.  One of these roles is that it acts as a giant Aheat-pump@ that sends energy from the tropics into the colder high latitudes, which produces a climate that we can live in.  With the destruction of these trees, the ultimate consequences will be that the Amazon Basin will heat up and begin to bake because there will be nothing but bare land, while the higher latitudes will begin to cool quickly.  The tropical region will burn up quickly because more than sixty percent of the water that evaporates back up into the atmosphere is from the vegetation.  Without these plants, the soil has very little water to give.  Another problem that is taking place as more and more trees are being cut down is the amount of carbon dioxide that is being released into the earth=s atmosphere.  Anywhere between 0.5 to 4 billion tons of carbon per year is being released from these clear-cutted tropical rainforests.  If the figure of nearly nine million hectares of tropical forest destroyed by fire worldwide during 1998 is correct, then, on the basis that a hectare of tropical rainforest contains between 100 and 250 tons of carbon in its biomass and three quarters of the total burns, the carbon emissions will have totaled between one and two billion tons from that one source alone.  If too much of this carbon gets built up in our atmosphere, there could be major problems in store for our environment.

 

Along with all these things suffering from this depletion of our rainforest are the natives of these forests.  For years these forests have been called home for thousands of people and hundreds of tribes.  These humans use these forests for building homes, hunting, fishing, and for gathering natural foods, just to name a few.

 

As more of these rainforests are destroyed, more of the natural resources are lost, and therefore the natives are pushed out.  Another negative thing for these rainforest natives is the arrival of new and bigger cities.  This may be looked upon as good for a country, but for small native tribes and societies within these diminishing rainforests, this is nothing but bad news.

 

There is really no way a person can tell what is in store for our earth=s rare and beautiful rainforest, but if the fast paced rate of deforestation continues to take place, there may not be any future at all for these forests.  These forests hold some of the greatest and most beautiful treasures on earth and there is no way to restore them if they are destroyed.  Also there will not be anyway to repair the environmental damage that has been done and is being done from this deforestation.  Thanks to a few environmental groups the future of the rainforest may have some hope.  Many of these groups have worked to plant trees in these disaster and threatened rainforest regions.  Also the studies being conducted are helping to shine light on the future of these forests.  The future of the rainforest lies in our hands and it is up to us to preserve this magnificent forest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                     Bibliography

 

 

Porritt, Jonathon.  Save the Earth.  London: Turner Publishing, 1991

 

Bunyard, Peter.  AEradicating the Amazon rainforests will Wreak havoc on climate@.

Ecologist Mar. 1999: v29n2 Pg. 81-84

 

Carr, Thomas A.  ARainforest entrepreneurs: Cashing in on Conservation@. 

Environment Sep. 1993: v35n7 Pg. 12-15.

 

Maxwell, Jessica.  AThe last best rainforest@.  Audubon Jan. 1994: V95nl Pg. 98-103

 

Stycos, Steven.  ARestoring the rainforest@.  Progressive Sep. 1996: v60n9 Pg. 14