Guest guest Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 Here is one article that makes it clear what the problems are .. the problems are not about Rosewood. Butch Amazon Deforestation Rises Sharply Emergency meeting called amid concerns about soy farming, cattle ranching The Associated Press updated 6:40 a.m. CT, Thurs., Jan. 24, 2008 SAO PAULO, Brazil - The rate of Amazon deforestation rose sharply during the last five months of 2007 as land was cleared for soy and cattle, prompting a top-level emergency meeting Thursday by government officials to deal with the problem. Environment Minister Marina Silva and other ministers headed to the presidential palace Thursday morning to meet with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva after the report on deforestation was issued late Wednesday. Silva's ministry estimates as much as 2,700 square miles of rain forest was cleared from August through December, meaning that Brazil could lose 5,800 square miles of jungle by August if the rate continues. That would represent a sharp increase from the 4,300 square miles that was cut down and burned from August 2006 through July of last year. 'Working with the worst hypothesis' Although preliminary calculations can only prove that 1,287 square miles of rain forest were cleared from August through December, ministry official Joao Paulo Capobianco said experts are still analyzing satellite imagery and working under the assumption that the higher amount of jungle was cleared. " We're working with the worst hypothesis, " he said, according to Brazil's official Agencia Brasil news service. The Environment Ministry could not immediately provide data to precisely compare the five-month destruction rate for last year to the same period in 2006. Concentration in 3 states' Most of last year's destruction happened in November and December and was concentrated in the three Amazon region states of Mato Grosso, Para and Rondonia. Mato Grosso is the center of Brazil's important soy production industry, and Latin America's largest nation is second only to the United States for production. Jungle is typically cleared in the Amazon to provide pasture for cattle, then soy farmers move in later and cultivate their crops. Brazil also has a booming beef export industry, and cattle ranchers have been expanding their operations in the Amazon. Brazil last year trumpeted a drop in Amazon deforestation, but the new numbers appeared to indicate that the situation has been reversed. Brazilian media reported that the president and the ministers would discuss possible emergency measures to reduce the deforestation. Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22818963/ 2008 MSNBC.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 21, 2008 Report Share Posted February 21, 2008 And, Butch, what becomes glaringly apparent in this article is that the beef industry (i.e., fast food beef-McD's) and all the burgeoning soy products being produced are mostly responsible for the increase in deforestation, not the aromatic products industry itself. A better solution to reverse the trend than curtailing our purchases of rosewood oil might be to stop eating beef and soy, especially the fast-food variety. Before beef/soy, it was the rosewood furniture/musical instrument biz. I was one of the first to take rosewood off my list . . . Prolly going to rethink that. Be well, Marcia Elston Samara Botane/Nature Intelligence, est. 1988 http://www.wingedseed.com Online 3/95 http://www.aromaconnection.org Group Blog 2/07 " Historically, the most terrible things - war, genocide and slavery - have resulted from obedience, not disobedience. " Howard Zinn ________________________________ ATFE2 [ATFE2 ] On Behalf Of Butch Owen Wednesday, February 20, 2008 11:55 PM ATFE2 [ATFE2] Amazon Deforestation Rises Sharply Here is one article that makes it clear what the problems are .. the problems are not about Rosewood. Butch Amazon Deforestation Rises Sharply Emergency meeting called amid concerns about soy farming, cattle ranching The Associated Press updated 6:40 a.m. CT, Thurs., Jan. 24, 2008 SAO PAULO, Brazil - The rate of Amazon deforestation rose sharply during the last five months of 2007 as land was cleared for soy and cattle, prompting a top-level emergency meeting Thursday by government officials to deal with the problem. <snipped> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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