ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Amazon rainforest covers approximately 5,500,000 km2 in South America. The entire Amazon rainforest represents more than half of the world's tropical rainforests. The Amazon rainforest is often discussed in connection with the loss of forested land in this area.

Due to the need for rare wood and new pastures for herds of cattle, whose breeding was becoming a profitable business, extensive interventions in the landscape took place. The use of forested land for conversion to agricultural land was considered effective according to legislation, and so in the early 1970s, after the price of soybeans rose, agricultural land was expanded at the expense of the original rainforest. The land used in this way was several times more expensive than the rainforest. Soybeans are one of the export items and contribute to the stability of the currency. The need to transport soybeans to industrial areas closer to the coast forced the construction of asphalt roads. These roads are often referred to as the heart of the deforestation arc, because the colonization of the rainforest progresses from here and the management system changes depending on the distance from the road.

Between 1970 and 2000, a total of 16.4% of the total area of ​​rainforest was cut down, which amounts to an annual loss of 20,200 km2 (less than 1/3 of the Czech Republic). Since 2002, the area of ​​protected areas has tripled, with a total of about one million km2 being protected, while logging and deforestation have decreased by 60%. In 2005, many parts of the Amazon rainforest were hit by huge droughts, the worst in the last 100 years. According to some experts, the rainforest is able to survive a maximum of three years of drought, a longer one could have irreversible consequences. The rainforest could reach a point of no return and threaten to turn into a savanna or even a desert. This would have a catastrophic impact on the entire planet.

The Amazon rainforest is known as the green lungs of the planet. However, it is also a major producer of the greenhouse gas methane.

Deforestation is primarily caused by rising living standards and a sharp increase in population and the associated hunger for agricultural land. Forest cover prevents erosion and landslides, as well as forming a natural water reservoir. Newly cleared areas are thus at risk of erosion, and crops planted on the disappearing agricultural land suffer from low groundwater levels. The rainforest's ability to retain rainfall is reduced, so when it rains, the water runs off, causing soil erosion. The rainforest's inability to retain rainfall causes droughts between rains. All of these problems cause a decrease in biodiversity and, in turn, increase the vulnerability of the entire ecosystem.

If logging is not stopped, there is a serious risk that more than 50% of the Amazon rainforest will turn into uninhabitable savannah.