TL: THE CAUSES AND CURES TO DEFORESTATION IN BRAZIL
SO: Greenpeace International Forest Campaign (GP)
DT: May 26, 1992
Keywords: terrec forests brazil south america deforestation
problems politics /

Introduction

In April this year, the Brazilian National Institute of Space
research released figures indicating that the rate of
deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon in 1991 had slowed by 20
per cent on the previous year's figures.  Their research showed
that forest loss in 1991 was down to eleven thousand square
kilometers, or 0.3 per cent of the Brazilian Amazon. At its
height in 1987, deforestation was believed to be five times that
rate.

This new information is being used by the Brazilian authorities
to claim that they have brought deforestation under control. The
report claimed that the ending of subsidies to cattle ranchers,
(which totalled over a billion dollars in the '80's) was a major
cause in the reduction in forest clearance. However, non-
governmental groups attribute the reduction principally to the
unprecedented economic recession that is crippling the country,
and slowing industrial expansion into the Amazon.

Technical doubts

The information from satellite imagery of forest fires in Brazil
and the extent of deforested areas is difficult to accurately
interpret. The figures must therefore be treated with caution.
More to the point, while some causes of deforestation in Brazil
have been checked, such as subsidies to cattle ranching, others,
such as logging and mining, are becoming much worse. Just a quote
to explain the difficulty of interpreting satellite data. Philip
Fearnside, researcher of Ecology at INPA (National Institute for
research in the Amazon) stated (cfr. P.Fearnside: "The Rate and
Extent of Deforestation in Brazilian Amazonia" 1990):
"Problems in interpreting the available data include the fact
that observations on deforestation result from different studies
which often refer to overlapping, but different, geographical
areas. Many studies only cover a portion of a political unit such
as a state, making it hard to use the results in conjunction with
available state-level data. Interpreting study results by
vegetation type, such as forests and cerrado (the Central
Brazilian scrub savanna) is often hampered by inconsistencies
among the definitions of the vegetation-types used in different
studies..."

Causes of deforestation yet to be addressed

Logging

In April the Secretary for the Environment, Jose Lutzenberger was
sacked, among other reasons, for revealing the extent of
corruption within the Institute for the Environment (IBAMA),
Brazil's Environment Department. Lutzenberger accused IBAMA of
being "just another branch of the logging industry" which is
playing an increasing role in Amazon deforestation, and described
it as a "den of crooks and thieves" (Washington Post, March 21).
According to observers and researchers, logging for tropical
hardwoods is becoming the most significant cause of deforestation
in the Brazilian Amazon. The opening up of new logging roads in
the rainforest allows for colonization by displaced poor from
areas of rural conflict. In addition, the revenues gained by
selling timber to logging companies fund other destructive
activities such as cattle-ranching.

As Lutzenberger's sacking revealed, IBAMA has been completely
ineffective in controlling illegal logging. In the last year the
Agency was able to identify and prosecute only one per cent of
the cases of illegal logging presented to it. According to the
ITTO (the International Tropical Timber Organization, which
represents the interests of the logging and timber industry),
less than one per cent of the area of forest subjected to
industrial logging in the tropics is managed sustainably. World
wide, the tropical timber industry destroys some five million
hectares of primary forests each year. This pattern of
destruction is clearly taking place and will grow in the
Brazilian Amazon.

Land rights for indigenous peoples

The most significant step that the Brazilian society has taken to
address forest loss to date is found in the 1988 Civil
Constitution. The Constitution guarantees the demarcation and
return of 190 million hectares of forests and lands to the
indigenous peoples of Brazil by the end of 1993. This represents
almost one third of the Brazilian Amazon. In 1991 some 17 million
hectares were handed back.

Nevertheless, invasions of Indian lands still occur at an
alarming rate, both by gold miners, loggers and cattle ranchers.
According to FUNAI, the government agency for indian affairs,
practically all the mahogany extracted today in the Brazilian
Amazon is taken without permission from Indian reserves. The
lands of the Yanomami tribe, returned to them in 1991, are still
under threat by tens of thousands of gold miners. Moreover the
Governors of the Amazon states do not accept the return and
demarcation of indian lands. Gilberto Mestrinho, governor of the
State of Amazonas, has threatened to use 5000 Military policemen
to stop further demarcation. According to Professor Mauro Leonel,
from the Institute for Anthropology and Environment (IAMA), the
situation of other Indian nations such as the Uru-Weu-Wau-Wau has
not changed substantially and they are still suffering the
consequences of invasion and pillage of the natural resources
from their lands.

Other Causes of Deforestation

Another leading cause of degradation of the forest ecosystem in
Brazil is gold mining, although this does not show up on
satellite imagery. Some one million gold miners are presently
working in the Brazilian Amazon, and are leaving a wake of
mercury pollution and devastated river ecosystems in their path.
Around 300 tons of mercury are released into the Amazon
environment every year, causing toxic pollution that will remain
for hundreds of years. The vast majority of these miners are
landless poor, forced off their lands in the North-east and
South-east of Brazil by cattle ranchers, export crop industries
and drought.

Land security for the rural poor is the most critical issue
leading to deforestation in Brazil today. Despite promises from
President Collor to institute land reform, the government has
failed to address this issue.  Large scale social conflict, rural
violence and extensive deforestation will continue in Brazil
until it does.

Deforestation induced by massive dams and hydroelectric projects
has slowed down due to the economic recession. The government,
however, is planning to build 47 new hydroelectric dams, when and
if it can get the finance. The optimistic reports on the slowing
down of deforestation will help to create a favorable climate for
new investments in this sector after UNCED. The planned
construction of hydroelectric dams in the Amazon is a time-bomb
waiting to explode.

The provision of land security through land reform is probably
the key condition that needs to be addressed to slow down
deforestation. Lack of land security, as exhibited by rural
violence has not diminished in Brazil.  Indeed, the situation of
peasants and laborers is getting worse, as announced in April by
the parish of Rio Maria (Para'), Father Ricardo Rezende
Figueiras, at the UN Commission of Human Rights in Geneva.

According  to  a  report released  in February by the
authoritative Lelio Basso Foundation for People's  Rights;
"If the situation in the Amazon has changed in some  respect,
this  is  due  to the unprecedented economic  recession  that  is
crippling the country.

"Brazilian legislation does not envisage instruments for the
effective participation of local communities in decision-making.
Participation and transparency are among the key elements to
guarantee a socially just and environmentally sound development
in all ecosystems, rainforest included.


"The Brazilian government has always taken decisions focusing
more on appearance rather than on quality, competence, content
legitimacy and representativity."

An example of the government's failure to allow participation of
affected communities in decision-making is its recent decision to
stop national NGOs from being involved in the Pilot Plan for the
Conservation of the Brazilian Amazon. This is a 250 million USD
project backed up by the World Bank and the G7 nations to
allegedly protect the Amazon rainforest.

Commenting on the overall situation of deforestation in the
tropics, Patrick Anderson, International coordinator of the
Greenpeace Forests Campaign said,

"Deforestation in the tropics virtually doubled in the last
decade, increasing to some 20 million hectares lost each year. If
this rate of increase were to continue, (doubling every decade)
all remaining unprotected tropical forests will be gone in the
first decade of the next century.

"Tropical deforestation currently contributes about 25 per cent
of annual global CO2 emissions. The root causes of most tropical
forest loss can be traced to lack of land security for the 150
million indigenous tropical forest peoples, and the 150 million
more recent forest dwellers, whose low impact forms of forest
usage are ignored and destroyed by industrialization of the
forest sector. Lack of land security outside the forests is an
equally important root cause of deforestation, as peasant farmers
are pushed off their land and into fragile forest areas to make
way for cash crop export industries and cattle ranching. Brazil
is a perfect example of this situation.

"The tropical timber industry feeds these fires of deforestation
by the outright destruction that logging causes, and through the
wave of forest loss that follows in its path, as landless people,
forced from their homelands occupy and deforest logging sites.
This is particularly true in Brazil, where rural conflict forces
hundreds of thousands of peasants off their lands each year.
Many of these people make their way into forest areas, in search
of land."

"The brightest light on the bleak horizon of tropical
deforestation is the protection of tens of millions of hectares
of rainforests that has occurred in the Amazon basin over the
last 3 years through the return of lands to indigenous forest
peoples in Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, Bolivia and
Ecuador. These indigenous peoples are committed to protecting
their forest heritage and cultures. With legal title to their
lands they are able to limit and stop further massive
deforestation."

Commenting on the situation in Brazil, Jose Augusto Padua,
Tropical Forest Coordinator for GP Brazil, said;
"The worst thing that can happen to the fight to save the Amazon
Forest is if this temporary reduction in the deforestation rate,
due basically to the recession, diverts public concern about the
problem. This permanent monitoring and close attention to the
issue is the real barrier to avoid further destruction. The
structural causes of deforestation are still present. The
probable renew of the economic growth in Brazil, that some
predict will happen by the end of this year, will make the
problem of forest loss even worse unless these underlying
structural issues, such as uncontrolled logging and cattle
ranching, are addressed."
=end=
[Greenbase Inventory May 28, 1992 ]