Natural Resource Management in the Brazilian Amazon

Abstract

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Synergisms among Fire, Land Use, and Climate Change in the Amazon

“…Forest damage can be substantial, however, because the bulldozers used during logging operations create networks of forest roads, kill many nonharvested trees, increase soil erosion and stream sedimentation, and fragment the forest canopy (52,53). As regional timber markets develop, forests are often relogged several times to harvest additional tree species.…”

“…As regional timber markets develop, forests are often relogged several times to harvest additional tree species. The damage to repeatedly logged forests can be intense, with 40-50% of the canopy cover destroyed (53).…”

Conservation and Development in Amazonian Extractive Reserves: The Case of Alto Juruá

“…However, improved transport systems in the western Amazon would change the business model of the regional timber sector (Figure 2.5), making it more like the exploitation model that has prevailed in the eastern and southern Amazon. This type of semi-intensive logging, sometimes erroneously referred to as selective logging, has been shown to be very damag- ing to the forest structure (Uhl et al 1997, Asner et al 2005 and will eventually lead to forest degradation, the loss of economic value in the forest, and eventual conversion of the forest to pasture, crops, or plantation forestry-despite ongoing attempts to make the industry sustainable (see Text Box 2).…”

Mapping land use of tropical regions from space

“…1). Cattle ranching is the most important land use after deforestation in the Amazon region (15), with smallholder agriculture, shifting cultivation, and gold mining making smaller contributions (16). Largescale agriculture has recently become economically important in the region (13), contributing significantly to increased deforestation rates (7,17).…”