Geography - south america

• The increasing prosperity in the world leads to a greater demand for food, raw materials and fuels. Multinationals and governments see opportunities in this and exploit the Amazon region and Bolivia, among others. 

  There are large reserves of minerals here and there is enough space for large-scale agriculture, but the exploitation is often at the expense of nature, the environment and the population
• The Amazon region is the largest rainforest on earth. It spans nine countries (see source 1). It is of global importance for the absorption of CO2 and the production of oxygen. In addition, it has an enormous biodiversity and approximately four to five hundred indigenous tribes live there.
• Large-scale deforestation and pollution have taken place for several decades. These strongly affect the carrying capacity of the area and are bad for biodiversity. In addition, they cause land degradation through erosion, landslides and flooding. They also lead to displacement of the indigenous population, causing them to lose their habitat.
• The exploitation of the Amazon region is done through large-scale livestock farming (source 3). In recent decades, this sector has expanded considerably and Brazil is now one of the largest beef exporters in the world. Prosperous regions such as Europe have long been major buyers of meat and demand is growing rapidly in emerging economies (see source 2). Livestock farming is also the largest cause of deforestation in the Amazon region. Rainforests are cut down or burned to create pastures. Making land suitable for agriculture is called reclamation.
• Plantation agriculture is common in the Amazon region and Bolivia: agriculture on large farms where plantation crops are produced for the world market using modern agricultural methods in monocultures.
• Soybean is one of the most widely grown plantation crops in the Amazon. Brazil is even one of the largest soybean producers worldwide. The rising demand for this crop is partly due to the increasing consumption of meat: about 75% of soy production is destined for animal feed.
• The plantations create jobs and wealth in the countryside, but also lead to deforestation and soil and water pollution due to the large-scale use of fertilizers and pesticides.
• Bolivia is the world's second largest producer of coca leaves, the raw material for cocaine. Traditionally, the crop was grown on a small scale in the Andes, but increasing global demand led farmers to grow it commercially. Production expanded and rainforest has now also made way for cocoa fields.
• Tropical wood serves, among other things, as a building material, for example for stairs and window frames. Tropical wood is popular because it is harder than most species in western countries. It is also cheaper: no wood plantations have to be established and wages are lower in the countries where the wood comes from. Some of the logging in the Amazon and Bolivia is done legally, but it is estimated that 60 to 80% is illegal.
• Several countries in Central and South America are experiencing rapid economic growth. This increases the demand for electricity. The huge amounts of water in the Amazon region make the area suitable for hydroelectric power plants. So far, about 150 dams have been built in the Amazon region. 
• They are important from an economic point of view and in principle they provide sustainable energy, but they also cause deforestation because large areas of the rainforest are flooded. As a result, habitats of indigenous populations are disappearing. In addition, the dams retain silt, which contains valuable nutrients for fish and other animals. Biodiversity and people's food supply are thus at risk.
• The Amazon region is rich in minerals, including gold, iron, uranium and oil. The export of these minerals brings in a lot of money, but its extraction leads to deforestation and pollution. Oil and chemicals such as mercury, which is used in gold mining, enter the natural environment and the food chain. The indigenous population is also often forcibly expelled and removed from areas where many minerals can be found.
• Bolivia also has many minerals. One of these is lithium, which is used in batteries for mobile phones and electric cars. The Bolivian government wants to export this metal on a large scale and expects a significant economic boost from this. The same applies to oil and gas, of which Bolivia also has huge reserves. Disadvantages of the extraction of minerals are also deforestation, pollution and displacement of the indigenous population. The government now even allows the extraction of oil in some protected natural areas.
• Many roads are built for the exploitation of the Amazon region. These have mainly indirect negative consequences: they also make it easier for small farmers, illegal loggers and gold diggers to move into the rainforest, which exacerbates deforestation and pollution.
• Many governments, organizations and companies recognize the importance of the Amazon region. The South American countries make laws to protect the rainforest and create government bodies to monitor compliance. Western governments, the European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) are developing or supporting initiatives to combat deforestation. In addition, international organizations work in the Amazon region, including the World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace.
• In 2006, Greenpeace got Brazilian soy producers to sign a treaty in which they promised not to cut down any new forest for soy plantations. There are more and more companies that no longer want products in their range for which rainforest has been cut down. There are also organizations that stand up for the rights of the indigenous people. They want the indigenous populations to be entitled to the land where they live and strive for recognition of land rights for the indigenous populations.