What Arguments are Brought Up by Development?
Due to the fact that there is damage going to be caused to the rainforest and that society and economy has to develop somehow, there are going to be conflicts between different groups and many people will have general opinions on the subject.
Staring with the arguments against development using the rainforest, these are mainly viewed by conservationists, environmentalists and researchers. They feel that deforestation will have major consequences on the planet in the future. The damage is most threatening to the ecosystem, which all have knock on effects. For example, once the trees are cut down it firstly causes many species of life to lose their habitats, without the covering canopy of trees it also exposes the soil. With the heavy rainfall on the soil it causes flooding and erosion. The actual climate is also disturbed because it does not allow the constant evaporation and transpiration, disrupting rainfall. It can all eventually lead to desertification.
The lack of trees will also increase the levels of carbon dioxide in the air and accelerate global warming. This is what many people fear to lose, as well as the many range of plants that provide us with chocolate and also some of the most important medicines and cures.
However, there are also many beneficial factors of development. Some people argue that why have the different plants and trees that give us fine furniture, chocolate and coffee if they are not going to be used in development to eventually be sold to us. The people of Brazil rely on this development to maintain what is their daily life. As Brazil is an LEDC it needs to ‘exploit’ the rainforest or use its resources to increase industrial growth and international trade, it is their income that is the final result for them. They would feel their quality of life would be very poor if not able to use the materials able for them to develop.
Sustainable Development
Currently the Amazon is being used for many development projects including cattle ranching, forestry, transport, small scale farming etc. this is what is leading to its deforestation. Nevertheless, new ways have come about where the rainforest need not be harmed or permanently damaged, this technique is called sustainable development.
Sustainable development can help or benefit all aspects of development and yet still generate the income and trade required. Some of the main ways of doing this are firstly rubber tapping. This is an ecological and traditional activity, and had been going on for many years. It saves trees because rubber or latex can be extracted without the need to cut down the rubber tree.
Others methods of sustainable development are the use of non timber products such as fruits, fibres and nuts. These are quite an important source of income and can be extracted without destroying the ecosystem, which was initially done by tribes anyway. There are also medicinal plants which are harvested to produce the drugs we use today, about 650 species come from the Amazon.
Tourism can have a major role to play when damaging the environment. This is why Ecotourism has been introduced and is where visitors can enjoy the beauty of the rainforest without having a massive impact on the area. Accommodation and activities would be environmentally sensitive. From this Brazil can generate their income as tourists are willing to spend money in local areas.
As logging is a huge conflict issue and as the image above shows it contributes mainly to the deforestation of the Amazon. This is why sustainable logging has been developed. This is where less is extracted and less of the forest is damaged. Sustainable logging can also mean that for every mean that for every one tree that is felled another one or two must be planted, thus keeping the environment from long term damage and also helping along the massive trade of timber logging.
Conclusion
In conclusion to this essay question on how Brazil can continue to develop without causing long term damage to the Amazon, I would say strongly that sustainable development is the way forward and the resolving matter of conflicts. Although there will still be arguments for and against any subject that is taken into action, these are better that they take place while sustainable development is in action rather than still debating and continuing the way it is.
When looking at the figures, that the global rates of destruction of the rainforest are one hectare per second, this is the equivalent of two American football pitches. It is shocking to see this happen and the devastating knock on effects it will have on the planet in the future. So Brazil can continue to develop by using means of sustainable development and at the same time not inflict a significant amount of harm to the environment.
