Chico Mendes and Rubber

The Amazon rainforest contains many resources that humans need and want. Rubber, collected in liquid latex form from rubber trees, is one of them. In the rainforests of Brazil, people depend on rubber tapping for their livelihood. At the same time, cattle ranchers wish to clear the land for their cattle herds to graze. They must cut down the trees to do this. Thus, rubber tappers and cattle ranchers disagree over who has the rights to the trees and land. This issue is complicated by the fact that many rubber tappers are members of indigenous Amazon tribes, while many cattle ranchers are foreigners or represent foreign corporations. A Brazilian rubber tapper named Chico Mendes organized his fellow workers into the National Council of Rubber Tappers to protest the cutting of the trees by the cattle ranchers. Through his efforts, the union was able to obtain Brazilian government support for the creation of "extractive reserves" within the seven state areas of Brazil. The extractive reserves save small areas of the land for sustainable use, like rubber tapping. Although Mendes was murdered in 1988, his former coworkers and activists worldwide continue his efforts.

We get many products from the rainforest, like food, building materials and medicines, from the many plant species. One important product of the rainforest is rubber; particularly the rainforest in Brazil.

The most basic latex for making rubber comes from making a scratch in the bark of a rubber tree several times a week. The liquid latex runs from the scar and then the rubber tapper collects it a cup propped against the trunk with a Y shaped twig to hold it in place. The rubber tapper collects it in large quantities and sells it in return for food or goods.

Where Does Rubber Come From? Latex is often described as the sap of the Hevea tree. This is not an accurate description. The sap runs deeper inside the tree, beneath the cambium. Latex runs in the latex ducts which are in a layer immediately outside the cambium. This highlights the skill of the tapper. If the cambium is cut, then the tree is damaged, because the cambium is where all the growth takes place. Too much damage to the cambium, and the tree stops growing and stops making latex.

All natural rubber originates in the Hevea tree, and it starts its journey when the tree is tapped. Trees are rarely tapped more often than once every two days. A tapper starts the trek around the plantation before dawn. At each tree a sharp knife is used to shave off the thinnest possible layer from the intact section of bark. The cut must be neither too deep, nor too thick. Either will reduce the productive life of the tree. This starts the latex flowing, and the tapper leaves leaves a little cup underneath the cut. In ordinary circumstances, this latex will normally coagulate into a lump in the bottom of the cup, called 'cup lump.' If the plantation manager wants to make latex, then the tapper must add a stabilising agent to the cup. Usually this is ammonia, which prevents the latex from coagulating. The tapper returns a few hours later and collects the stuff in the cup -- either cup lump or latex. The double round trip usually finishes at about 2 pm.

Geography and Biodiversity of Acre Westernmost Brazilian state Neighboring countries: Peru and Bolivia Population: 438,489 (1996) Area: about 55,000 sq mi Capital: Rio Branco with 288,907 inhabitants (1996) The whole of Acre lies in the Amazon Basin. 93% of its territory is covered with tropical rain forest. Acre is divided in two geographical regions which are the drainage basins of the rivers Juruá and Purús. The rivers of Acre are so-called white-water rivers, which (unlike the clear- and black-water rivers) carry murky, muddy waters, rich in minerals. Due to the regular floodings and the quality of the water, the soil at the shores is more fertile. The alarming extent of the deforestation the biodiversity of Acre and the Amazon Basin is still enormous: There are the mammoth trees like the "sumauma" that reaches up to 160 feet of altitude, innumerable species of climbing plants and vines, ferns, bushes, palm trees, the water lily "victoria regia" with 6 feet of diameter; there are the Brazil-nuts, the copaíba, various fruits like açai, graviola, and cupuaçu, numberless species of insects, fishes, the parrots, araras and other birds that add together with the crickets and cicadas the unique acoustics to the rain forest; the caimans, the boa constrictor "sucuri", the rays, the land- and sweet-water turtles, tapirs, the monkeys, jaguars, panthers and other wildcats...