Economy Booms, Trees Vanish. Vegetarians- Where'd You Get Veggieburger?

[chlamor]

The economy booms, the trees vanish. Vegetarians - Where did you get that Veggieburger?
By Special Report
May 23, 2005, 02:11

May 19, 2005 - Alarming new figures show that the destruction of the Amazon rainforest-the world's biggest tropical forest-has accelerated. Booming agriculture, especially soya growing, is one of the main culprits.

IF IT were simply a matter of passing strong laws to protect it, the Amazon rainforest-the world's largest tropical forest, around the size of western Europe-would be safe. Brazil, whose territory includes about two-thirds of the forest, has impressively tough laws that, on paper, set most of it aside as a nature reserve and impose stiff penalties for illegal logging. But the latest annual figures for deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, published by the government on Wednesday May 18th, have confirmed a disturbing recent trend: the destruction is accelerating despite all efforts to curb it. In the year to August 2004, more than 26,000 square kilometres (10,000 square miles) of forest were chopped down, an area larger than the American state of New Jersey.
 
The area deforested in the past year was up 6% on 2003, far worse than the Brazilian government's predictions that it would rise by no more than about 2%. It was the second worst year for the destruction of the rainforest since satellite surveys began (see chart). It is reckoned that almost a fifth of the Brazilian part of the forest has now been wiped out; if it were to continue at this rate, it would all be flattened within the next two centuries. Things are hardly any better in those portions of Amazonia that lie in neighbouring countries: Ecuador has lost about half of its forest, mainly due to illegal logging, in the past 30 years. Worse, tropical forests have been disappearing at an even faster rate elsewhere in the world, such as in Africa. The world's greatest stores of biodiversity-and some of its main suppliers of the oxygen we breathe-are still being chewed up at an alarming rate, despite decades of talk among world leaders and environmentalists about the need to ! preserve them.
 
As has been seen before in Brazil, the surge in the rate of deforestation is a sign that the country's economy is booming-recently it has been growing at an annual rate of around 5%. Most of the timber felled illegally in Amazonia is sold to domestic buyers, in particular to the construction industry in Brazil's richer southern states. But the forest is also threatened by the rapid expansion of farming and ranching. In the past year, almost half of the total deforestation was in the state of Mato Grosso on the forest's southern fringe, where huge areas have been flattened to grow soybeans. Last year Brazil earned about $10 billion from exporting soy products, exceeding its income from coffee and sugar, the country's traditional export crops. Mato Grosso's governor, Blairo Maggi, is also its soybean king-his family's farms are the world's largest single producer of the crop.

http://www.axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/article_17893.shtml

[knowbody0]

1. genetically modified to boot!

[Warpy]

4. Which is why veggieburgers from natural foods stores

don't use soybeans from the rainforest land. They're tested to avoid Frankenfood soybeans.

Supermarkets aren't quite as fastidious, although some brands may be carried both places.

[firefox]

2. Nobody is saying "Save the rainforests"

There is no real international call to save anything much less the rainforests. Thirty years ago it was a big deal, but now everyone just shakes their head and says the destruction is not a good thing. Young people will have grandchildren that ask them "What were the rainforests?" What rainforests remain will be called rainforest museums that make money by selling tickets.

[Inland]

3. That's cute, but wrong. Carnivores are causing deforestation.

Most of the growth in agricultural in developing nations goes to grazing land or land for raising animal feed. They want meat, which requires ten pounds of plant matter to convert into a pound of edible flesh, at least.

If everyone switched to a vegetarian diet, then there would be more than enough arable land to support us all waist deep in greens and grains.

[chlamor]

5. It is neither/both

By and large a veggie diet is MUCH less energy intensive and if one could do ONE thing for the planet, and their own health, it would be to stay away from cattle in every way. However soy is also energy intensive and in fact overused by Western, particularly American, society.

Your point about animal feed is on the mark and let's not forget how much water is used. I forget the amount of water that goes into One Pound of beef-it is alot.

Ultimately it is about energy not veggie-carnivore.

Go Local-No chemicals-Small animals-Goat Yogurt-Seed Saving

BTW this has nothing to do with 'being cute'.

Peace