Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon By Nicholas Smale

Focus of the Research The focus of this research was on the main drivers of deforestation, the consequences of deforestation, and what has to be done to lessen the impacts on biodiversity and on climate change.

The Amazon The Brazilian Amazon is one of the largest tropical forests in the world and contains great biodiversity and potential to mitigate the effects of climate change.

However… Deforestation became intense due to several reasons: Road Constructions Small Farmers Mechanized Agriculture Other reasons

ROAD CONSTRUCTIONS Studies indicate that 87% of the deforestation in the Amazon happens within 25km of a highway.

BR-010 The BR-010 is a highway that links Brasilia (Brazil’s capital) to Belem (capital of the state of Para)

BR-364 The BR-364 links Cuiaba (capital of the state of Mato Grosso) and Porto Velho (capital of the state of Rondonia).

BR-319 The BR-319 links Manaus (capital of the state of Amazonas) to Porto Velho (capital of Rondonia) It was built in the 1970s, but was never paved. Reconstructing and paving it would cause up to 39 million hectares of deforestation, with CO2 emissions exceeding 4.8 billion tons by 2050, since it goes through intact forests fragments of the Amazon. Brazil’s government plans on building a road that would branch off BR-319 and go through the Madeira-Purus interfluve.

Madeira-Purus Interfluve The Madeira-Purus interfluve has one of the highest levels of species richness in all of the Amazon. New species of Mammals and Birds have been described in that area. Only 19% of its area is considered “priority for conservation”.

Small Farmers Many studies indicate that small farming are one of the main causes of deforestation Soybean farming, in particular, had a significant increase – from 16,000km2 in 1990 to 60,000km2 in 2008.

Small Farmers Due to rapidly growing populations in the frontier areas of the Amazon, there is a rising number of subsequent-generation farmers, who encounter cheap family labor, low technology, high cost of transportation. Agricultural operations get established quickly. Farms expand from internal frontier regions to external frontier regions, where there is a new round of deforestation on previously undisturbed forests.

Mechanical Agriculture Mechanical agriculture is also one of the biggest drivers of deforestation

Paragominas, Pará A study conducted in the city of Paragominas, in the state of Pará, demonstrated the impact of deforestation on ant species. Even though most people wouldn’t care about ants, they are extremely important for our environment for a few reasons: Soil Health Nutrient Cycling Energy Flow Dispersion of Seeds

Deforestation in Paragominas Paragominas has had 35% of its forest area converted into pasture or industrialized agriculture, or has experienced degradation by logging, fragmentation and understory fires. In the study, an area of 20,000km2 was analyzed, which included disturbed and undisturbed forest areas. They concluded that ant species richness was significantly higher in forests than in production areas, as the graph on the next slide will reveal.

Species Richness

Study Conclusion: They concluded that primary forests are a key driver of ant species’ richness, followed by secondary forests which also demonstrated a high biodiversity level.

Deforestation Rates and CO2 Emissions During the 1980s and the 1990s, the Brazilian Amazon emitted more than a quarter of global annual carbon emissions, due to deforestation. Deforestation rates are still high - 1.63 x 10˄6 ha yr˄-1 between 2001 and 2007 – which is not significantly higher from the annual rate in the 1990s- 1.85 x 10˄6 ha yr˄1 (ANOVA, p=0.3)

Concerns regarding Deforestation Brazil must slow down deforestation, rather than attempt to avoid increasing it. If Brazil maintains its deforestation rates, carbon emissions will be higher, because deforestation is reaching higher biomass forests, where the quantity of stocked carbon is greater, causing a larger impact on climate change. In addition, by slowing down on deforestation, Brazil will preserve thousands of species, which are currently in risk of becoming extinct.

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