MANAGING THE RAINFOREST

Conserving the Rainforest

A suggestion to conserve rainforests has been to designate areas national parks or reserves, by 1990 there were 550 tropical national park, however this only accounts for 4% of the worlds total tropical forests.

A big problem in the conservation of the rainforest is money, countries such as Brazil know that it is not financially feasiable to keep the entire rainforest, especially when private contractors can offer so much money for the areas of land, but the issue of controlling the clearing of small areas is too hard. A scheme was introduced to offset debts to developed countries in an attempt to stop the destruction of tropical forests.

The consumer also plays a part in helping to preserve the rainforest. Since the introduction of sustainable forestry in Amazonia many more retailers are requesting that the tropical hardwoods come from a certified forest management scheme. This allows the customer to know they are not contributing to the deforestation of the rainforest. 

http://www.economist.com/node/616834 A very useful article on the Amazon rainforest, however parts of it may be a little too in depth. 

Class Tasks 

Task: A GCSE class could spit in to group of 6 or 8 and have a debate about the deforestation of the Amazon. On one side we have Brazil who need deforestation to occur in order to develop and on the other side the rest of the world who are against deforestation.

Point for;

• Land will provide money
• Land can be used for agriculture to feed an increasing population
• It is hard to regulate the contractors from central government

Points against;

• We only get it once!
• It destroys the natural habitats of hundreads of thousands of species
• The local, regional and global consequences would be terrible.

Sustainable development of the Rainforest 

Sustainable development means that the needs of the current population can be met without the needs of future generations being compromised. There are several different ways in which governments have attempted to intitate sustainable rainforest development. 

1.  The process of agro forestry where farmers grow trees and crops at the same time, this is beneficial as the canopy provided by the trees provides shelter and prevents soil erosion. The trees above provide dead organic matter which feed in to the soil providing the crops with nutrients. 

2. Using satellite technology rainforests can be monitored to ensure that the guidelines and processes being set out are being followed. 

3. Logging can be managed by the process of selective logging, trees are only logged once they reach a certain height meaning that they all have roughly the same life expectancy. 

4. Replacing trees which which have been cut down to maintain the canopy. This process is know as afforestation. 

5. The education of those who are involved in the deforestation process is equally as important as the above processes. If they understand the consequences of their actions this may affect whether they carry on causing deforestation. 

This video explains the consequences of deforestation: http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningzone/clips/rainforest-destruction-kalimantan-indonesia-and-costa-rica/3096.html

Introduction of Eco Tourism

As people are looking to go further a field and to more exotic places on their travels locations such as the Amazon have become increasingly popular. Tourism obviously has an impact on the environment but by taking small steps it can be minimalised.

Year Eight : Design a eco tourist lodge within the rainforest. Keep in mind the points which are highlighted on http://www.s-cool.co.uk/a-level/geography/ecosystems/revise-it/managing-the-tropical-rainforest.