Managing a tropical rainforest

• Causes of Deforestation: Logging, Subsistence farming, Commercial Farming
• logging- 2% of deforestation, most of it is illegal, valuable hardwood trees (mahogany) are cut down and exported
• Subsistence Farming- 25% of deforestation, when locals move into Amazon and grow food for themselves + families, not large scale
• Commercial Farming- 70% of deforestation, trees cut down to provide land for farming/animal rearing, large scale monoculture plantations
• Selective logging


  Instead of clearing big sections of forest, only specific trees are felled
• Selective logging


  • Used in Malaysia
• Replanting


  Forest seeds grown in nurseries are planted to recreate the original forest
• Replanting


  • Conservation International is planting 73 million trees in the Amazon
• Conservation


  National parks and nature reserves are established to stop deforestation
• Conservation


  • Corcovado National Park in Costa Rica
• Education


  The Rainforest Alliance works with farmers in Peru to promote sustainable coffee production
• Ecotourism


  Small-scale tourism where tourists stay in ecolodges and are educated about the rainforest by local guides
• Ecotourism


  • Monteverde Cloud Forest in Costa Rica
• International tropical hardwood agreements

  The 2006 International Tropical Timber Agreement (ITTA) promotes the sale of timber from sustainable sources (eg, selective logging) by registering each tree felled
• Debt reduction


  Cancelling part of a country's debt in exchange for conservation of the rainforest. This reduces the economic need for deforestation and has become known as 'debt for nature swapping'
• Debt reduction


  • The USA paid US$21 million to Brazil in 2010 in return for rainforest conservation
• Replanting Advantages + Disadvantages: Some success, especially done soon after deforestation, but impossible to recreate the original ecosystem
• Conservation Advantages + Disadvantages: Effective at preserving the forest, however, Economic development opportunities are reduced
• Education Advantages + Disadvantages: Money is earned more sustainably, however, it relies on goodwill rather than legal agreements
• Ecotourism Advantages + Disadvantages: Local people earn money through conserving the environment however, it is too small scale to have a large economic benefit
• Hardwood Agreements Advantages + Disadvantages: Covers 80% of tropical rainforests, but illegal trade in hardwood is difficult to stop