Politics of the Amazon

One major indicator of the health of the Amazon is the amount of rainforest that is lost every year. Deforestation has multiple causes. Trees are cut down for logging or to make way for commercial farming and cattle mining. In the dry season farmers use slash-and-burn techniques to open up new land for planting. Typically, the construction of highways provides transport routes for incomers to push back the forest, developing an associated network of dirt roads and small settlements. It is estimated that in the last 50 years the Brazilian Amazon has lost around one-fifth (20%) of its forest cover, a total of 480,000 sq kms. As discussed below, some believe this puts it close to a dangerous tipping point which could lead to a complete collapse of the rainforest eco-system.