There are many causes of deforestation. Many development institutions and politicians regard population pressure as the major factor causing rainforest destruction. However, the belief that this is the main cause of rainforest loss is used by many governments and businesses to imply that there is little or nothing they can do about the problem of rainforest destruction. In fact it is large companies and the unfairness of international trade, which are the root causes of rainforest destruction. For instance, millions of hectares of primary rainforests are being destroyed in South East Asia by logging, and the driving force in this industry is not the local population but international demand for timber. It is the logging industry, which is the main immediate factor responsible for colonisation of rainforest.
International competition for markets can lead to the undervaluing of forest products and frequently the longer-term environmental and social costs of logging operations are ignored. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) does not allow countries to discriminate against imported goods on environmental grounds, effectively removing incentives to improve environmental performance in either production systems or import controls. The growth of massive trans-national corporations, which dominate the timber trade, control 80-90% of the commerce in forest products. Bilateral aid agencies in promoting forest destruction are well known. For example, the World Bank has funded the Indonesian transmigration programme resettling hundreds of thousands of people in areas previously only sparsely inhabited by indigenous tribes. This has resulted in the destruction of huge tracts of lowland rainforest, and massive erosion.
Debt also remains a crushing problem for many poor countries, and currently exceeds US$1 trillion. Indonesia is one of the 17 most indebted countries, and sees its rainforests as a way of paying this debt. Often timber is sold below market value in order to undercut the competition and earn the foreign currency required to pay the debt. Reducing the debt through increased export earnings gives Indonesia a chance to develop and improve the quality of life for its inhabitants, but with no long term planning or continuation for the future the clearance of the forest is a short-term gain only. Once the resource has been used, it is gone forever. The government has tried to introduce replanting schemes to combat this problem, but they are too small scale and poorly managed to make any real impact.
The government and the logging companies often see the development of the rainforest in a positive light as they feel in can be used as a scenic resource for tourism. If managed is a sustainable way, for example conservation of areas in national parks, with zones that allow tourism and native settlements this may be possible (eco-tourism). However it can lead to conflicts between the local indigenous people. The government of Indonesia has also sponsored road building and points out this as an advantage of destroying large areas of the rainforest. In fact these roads have usually only been built to support the logging companies’ movement of heavy vehicles and machinery. The use of such machinery in the forest can cause increased soil erosion causes the silting of rivers and streams. There is also increased leaching of the soil, leading to loss of soil nutrients which affects the soil fertility.
The deforestation of Indonesia has an impact on the country’s politics. The government has been keen to pay of its international debts and obtains a high income form the logging industry, it has often granted concessions to timber companies who have powerful political influence. In addition to this the government appears to have little interest in stopping illegal logging or even enforcing its own logging regulations. Corruption and political instability can only lead to the over expansion of forest industries. Unemployment encourages forest loss through illegal timber felling, smuggling of forest products and other illegal activities such as mining. Economic policies in the North of Indonesia and unequal terms of trade have tended to increase rather than alleviate poverty. People without any hope or future have little incentive to manage forest resources well, and often have no other choice but to exploit them unsustainably, for short-term survival and produce a rapid rate of deforestation.
Although many people in the MEDC (more economically developed country) may criticise the deforesting Indonesian people, it is their demand for rainforest products such as rubber, hardwood timber and drugs that encourages the country to deforest their land so heavily. In addition to this, the MEDC is also a buyer of cheap animal feeds grown on the farms that were built where the forest was cleared. It could therefore be said that the MEDC is indirectly contributing to international problems such as global warming and air pollution through their demand for such products.
One of the other main causes of deforestation is the clearing of the forest by the local people using “slash and burn” techniques. This expansion has led to plots of land being available for settlement and/or farming by the local increasing population. This increases the food supply for the people, but often migrants who move into the rainforest have a very low standard of living. Another of the disadvantages caused by this method of clearance, is the air pollution caused by the thick smoke can seriously affect peoples health. Slash and burn cultivation by small-scale farmers accounted for 45% of tropical deforestation in Indonesia in 1980. After a few years cropping, many soils support grassland and scrub, and farmers move to other areas.
In Indonesia, the transmigration program clears vast areas of rainforest for plantations or smallholdings. Rainforests are almost always unsuited to permanent agriculture, and so these often fail. Many tribal groups have lost their land and been forcibly integrated into the dominant Indonesian culture.
The logging and clearing of the trees by heavy commercial machinery has several advantages. These advantages include the production of timber, which provides local employment, and income, which are needed and help contribute to the national debt relief. However if they do not replant, which is often the case, this economic programme will not be sustainable, and future income will cease. Timber harvesting is a significant cause of deforestation in Indonesia, as logging often damages more trees than it removes – when only 3% of trees are cut, up to 49% are damaged.
Social relationships, and especially the position of women in society, play a key role in shaping attitudes towards forests. In many developing countries women have the most direct involvement in forests, gathering fuel-wood, collecting animal feed and leaf litter from the forest floor for composting, and often clearing forest areas to create new fields. However, they are often the last to be consulted or involved when governments or aid agencies develop strategies for improving forest management. This can lead to conflicts within the communities involved and a lack of support for tree-planting schemes and other well-intentioned development projects.
The impact the logging has on plants and animals is widespread. The Indonesian rainforest is home to over 20,000 plant species and 17% of the world’s birds. Some species are threatened with extinction, for example Indonesia contains some of the world’s last orang-utans. . The widespread deforestation in Indonesia has led to an overwhelming effect on the biodiversity, biomass and net primary produce of the area, all of which have been dramatically reduced or lowered. Rainforests are much more than just collections of plants and animals. They are complex ecosystems, in which the plants and animals interact together and with the tropical rainforest environment (particularly the soils, climate and hydrology). Apart from maintaining suitable conditions for the wildlife within the forest, these interactions means that rainforests perform a series of important services that affect the environment both within and beyond the forest themselves.
The rainforest reflects the tensions and interplay between the powerful and the powerless, the rich and the poor, the north and the south. The problem is immensely complex and there is no simple or single solution. A wide variety of solutions have been suggested, including more research and development on tropical forest resources, more and better education about the forests, more and better forest conservation and restoration schemes, increased goods prices for import restrictions on timber, and increased co-operation between countries to seek practical and sustainable uses of rainforests.
In conclusion the impact of deforestation of the tropical rainforest in Indonesia has both positive and negative effects. The main positive outcomes of the deforestation are the increased employment opportunities and incomes. This leads to reducing foreign debts and increasing the countries export earnings. There is more land available for settlement and farming to feed and house a growing population. All which lead to the economic development of Indonesia and an improved way of life for its inhabitants. However I feel that the negative effects of the deforestation far outweigh the positive. The majority of positive effects are only short-term gains, and are not sustainable in the way they are currently operated. When the forest is gone, possibly by 2005, Indonesia will lose one of its main sources of income. The cost to the environment will be enormous, not only will the trees be gone, but so will the animals, plants and birds. This process will be irreversible unless there are strict conservation laws, which are enforced, and a proper replanting and reforestation scheme.
Bibliography
- Microsoft Encarta
- www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov
- www.bbc.co.uk