The rainforest... their business or our nose?

Question

It seems as if we all want to save the rainforest, yet in my region of the world we cut down trees and log like there's no tomorrow to make paper, and it's acceptable because "they replant the trees." So what's the big deal if they chop down the rainforest to make some money? It's no different from what's happening here in America. It seems to me they need the money more than us.

Answer 1

It is different than what's happening in America.  The thing is that in America, on tree farms, they are growing and cutting trees sustainably.  They keep planting more trees to replace the ones they cut down.

In the rainforest, they are clearcutting the forest in an unsustainable way.  They are not replacing the trees they are removing and it would take hundreds of years of the rainforest being untouched for it to grow back to its old size.  Also, the rainforest is home to so many animals and clear cutting it is destroying their habitat and causing some to go extinct.

Answer 2

Many places in the U.S. such as the Appalachain region, have been completely stripped of all its natural, original, old growth trees and ecosystems during the 1920's and prior.

One you disturb an ecosystem it will never return to its original state. It will recover but never at the level it once was.

Tropical rainforest's house more 2/3 of the world's species. Because the biodiversity is so vast there are species we havent even discovered yet.

"A typical four-mile square mile patch of rainforest contains as many as 1,500 species of flowering plants, 750 species of trees, 125 mammal species, 400 species of birds, 100 species of reptiles, 60 species of amphibians, and 150 different species of butterflies."..........

"there are more fish species in the Amazon river system than in the entire Atlantic Ocean."

However rich in flora and fauna, tropical rainforest soils are very poor. Many farmers must move on to clear new tracts of land after farming one for a year or two.

Along with the loss of biodiversity comes the loss of indigenous peoples who have lived on that land for thousands of years.  Today, there are less than 250,000 indigenous people left in Brazil. That's just a drop in the barrel considering what the numbers where before the industrial revolution.

Selling old growth wood, and/or tropical wood is, in my opinion irresponsible. Especially when it can be done in a sustainble way other than destroying huge tracts of forest to sell (illegally in many cases) to developing nations such as China, the U.S., and Europe.

Most of that wood being sold is sold for cheap to pay off debt to developed countries(like the U.S.)  who have, in the past, lent money to poor nations (in South America for example). The majority of all tropical wood is sold to developing countries who will pay high dollar to have exotic mahogany wood floors or whatever.

Another reason....

rainforests can take in vast quantities of CO2 (greenhouse gases) rainforests are the single greatest terrestrial source of air that we breathe.

They also plays a HUGE role regulating the world's climate.

and....

many of our migratory birds who you may see every day, fly to tropical rainforests to nest. Birds are very instinctual, once those forests are cut down its bye bye birdie.

"at least 1/3 of the planet’s bird species live in the Amazon rainforest"

and....

"37% of all medicines prescribed in the US have active ingredients derived from rainforest plants" 70% of the plant species identified by the US National Cancer Institute as holding anti-cancer properties come from rainforests."

"90% of the rainforest plants used by Amazonian Indians as medicines have not been examined by modern science."

so, bye bye cancer cures!!

**One of my Professors in college  visits Eucador every summer, he's a a Dr. in medicinal plants.

Its important to protect what we have. Whether it be the tropicla or temperate rainforests, deciduous and evergreen forests. Whatever the case.

Resources are there for us to use but its up to us to use them repsonsibly.

Answer 3

The rainforest of Brazil once cut, will take 500 years to grow back.  It will never grow bback because the land is being used for corn and sugurcane.  Ethynal.

Answer 4

because it is home to many species of wild animals and if we replant , it wont grow back as fast as they cut it down....plus all the trees supply oxygen to places like Brazil