1. Land Use Conflict in the Amazon Rainforest

2. Type of forest
Tropical rainforests are a type of broadleaf evergreen forest found near the equator
Climate is warm and wet all year

3. The largest …
The Amazon is the largest tropical rainforest in the world, covering more than 2 million square miles (more than half the size of the U.S.)
Most of it
lies in Brazil

4. Many-layered ecosystem
A rainforest has several layers
Canopy: thick layer of overlapping tree branches at the very top
Lower story: shrubs and lower trees
Forest floor: the bottom

5. Home to a variety of plants and animals
Rainforests are home to about 50% of the world’s living species
Scientists use the term biodiversity to describe the variety of plant and animal species that live in one area

7. The Lungs of the Earth The trees and other plants
that grow in the rainforest
have been called the lungs of the earth
WHY?
They play a key role in the earth’s carbon- oxygen cycle
A series of events that turn carbon dioxide into oxygen and then convert the oxygen back into carbon dioxide

8. The rainforests are believed to produce ¼ of Earth’s oxygen

9. Deforestation
During the past 40 years, close to 20 percent of the Amazon rainforest has been cut down
Scientists fear that an additional 20 percent of the trees will be lost over the next two decades.
If that happens, the forest's ecology will begin to unravel.

10. How should the resources of rainforests be used and preserved?
There are six different groups that are interested in the Amazon rainforest:
Native Amazonians
Rubber Tappers
Loggers
Settlers/farming
Cattle Ranchers
Environmentalists

11. Native Amazonians 10 million native people lived in the Amazon
Today about 200 native tribes remain in the interior of the forests
Many are from different ethnic groups and speak different languages
There are at least 50 groups that still don't have regular contact with the outsides and keep away from them

12. Native Amazonians WHY save the forest?
To preserve their tribes and way of life

13. Rubber Tappers Have lived in the Amazon for many generations
These workers “tap” or collect, the sap from rubber trees that grow in the rainforest
The sap is then dried to make rubber products such as erasers or tires for cars and bikes
About 63,000 families depend on rubber tapping

14. Rubber Tappers Why save the forest?
Their way of life doesn’t harm the rainforest
They have a right to the rainforest since they worked there so long

15. Loggers
Logging companies began moving into the Amazon basin during the 1960s
Interested in …
the mahogany and rosewood trees, which are used for making furniture.
Also interested in the Samauma, also known as the "Queen of the Forest", are being exploited to make cheap plywood for construction industries

16. Loggers These trees are scattered all over… Clear cutting leads to
The loggers clear cut whole patches of rainforest, then move on to a new area.
Clear cutting leads to
Deforestation
Further development of the forest such as roads, farming and ranching

18. Roads in the Amazon
There are more than 105,000 miles  of roads, most made illegally by loggers
Most famous is the Trans-Amazon Highway

19. Loggers Why should they be able to continue cut down trees?
They are helping Brazil’s economy grow by creating jobs
Logging provides wood for Brazil’s furniture factories and paper mills
Brazil export a lot of wood, the money earned from these sales is helping Brazil to pay of its debt to other countries

20. Settlers/farming Brazil has a huge income gap
Most of the farmland has been controlled by a few wealthy families
Millions of poor Brazilians own no land at all
The government encouraged settlers to move into the Amazon since the 1960s
They were looking for areas to farm

21. Cattle Ranchers
Since the 1960s, the Amazon has been home to cattle ranching
Today this is one of the main causes of deforestation
They move in after the loggers have cleared the land

22. Cattle ranchers Why should they be able to continue?
They argue they are making good use of rainforest land by raising food for the world and earning an income for Brazil
Many countries import beef from Brazil, such as the U.S. and Europe

23. Settlers/farmers
Settlers clear the trees of their land to create farm fields
Farming in the rainforest is hard, as constant rain washes away the soil’s nutrients
Often grow soy beans
Why should they be able to continue?
There is no other land for them in Brazil
They need to feed their families

24. Environmentalists Want to slow the clearing of the rainforest
Want to protect the biodiversity of the rainforest
Claim that we are losing over 100 plant, animal and insect species every day to rainforest deforestation

25. Different interests
Different groups of people come to the rainforest for different reasons
Some come to clear land for farming and ranching
→ deforestation (removal of trees from large areas)
Other people are interested in sustainable development
…finding ways to use the resources of the rainforest without destroying it

26. Causes of deforestation in the Amazon
Cattle ranches 65-70%
Small-scale, subsistence agriculture 20-25%
Large-scale, commercial agriculture 5-10%
Logging, legal and illegal 2-3%
Fires, mining, urbanization, road construction, dams 1-2%

27. TASK
Write a letter to the Brazilian government. You can take on the role of an animal/tree of the Amazon, a native of the Amazon, a logger/rancher/farmer, etc. Your letter should use information from this PowerPoint, strong language/words, and include:
An introduction that identifies who you are. Use great details here.
Describe your concerns. What is happening in the rainforest that might be a threat to you OR why you should be allowed to use the Amazon rainforest?
Describe 2 actions that you think will best preserve and use the rainforest’s resources.
Conclude your letter with a “wrap up” that restates your concern.