Brazil Set to Flood Rainforest, Displace Thousands
The Xingu River — home to some 600 species of fish — is one of the largest tributaries running through the Amazon. But not if the Brazilian state power company has their way.
What would be the world’s third largest , called the Belo Monte, would flood over 200 square miles of tropical rainforest; about the size of Tucson, AZ. It would also flood the homes of 19,000 people.- » See also: Child Dies After Ingesting Pesticide Also Used to Kill Lions
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The river is lined with “a thick emerald canopy of trees” except for the spots of pastures that have been carved out for cattle. Several of the river’s fish species can only be found there.
Stephan Schwartzman, the director of tropical forest policy at the Environmental Defense Fund, said that “18 percent of the Amazon, an area nearly two times the size of California, had been cleared since the mid-1960s.”
While the lush tropical forest that is the Amazon has often been under attack from logging and cattle, Brazil is still one of the world’s greenest countries in terms of renewable-energy. More than forty-six percent of Brazil’s energy is from a renewable sources compared to the global average of thirteen-percent.
Deforestation peaked in 2004 and has since declined because of falling beef and soybean prices and because the government has stepped up enforcement of protected areas. Of course, this whole flooding the Amazon thing is a bit of a FAIL. But the Brazilian government officials claim that dams like Belo Monte are necessary to expand the country’s economy as it slips in to a recession.
It seems obvious, but what happens to the Amazon rainforest has global consequences. Flooding such a huge area will hamper the planet’s ability to rid the atmosphere of greenhouse gases. Not only that, it will really suck for the 19,000 people who will lose their land and homes. Changes in the local ecology will wipe out the livelihoods of many more, killing their main food sources and destroying their raw materials.
As the above postings point out rainforest destruction is the burning issue of our time. Emergency action will be needed to prevent run-away climate change. You can tell the world to stop tropical deforestation by sending a Rainforest SOS. Many have already done so, but every voice counts. I encourage you to visit The Prince’s Rainforest Project http://www.frogme.org/ where you can watch videos featuring HRH The Prince of Wales, Prince William and Prince Harry as well as Harrison Ford, the Dalai Lama, Daniel Craig and Robin Williams. Each supporter appears in the film, with a very cool 3D Argentinean Horn Frog - the project’s rainforest ambassador. The website also allows you to create your own video, so you can share your Rainforest SOS message with others. Go on get frogged- please check it out now!