Deforestation
Deforestation is the biggest threat to the Amazon Rainforest. Deforestation is the cutting down and exploitation of trees
in a large area of trees such as forests.
A few reasons why Amazon Rainforest trees are being cleared out or cut down are:
Between May 2000 to August 2006, Brazil lost nearly 150,000 km^2 of the rainforest. Since 1970, over 600,000 km^2 of the Amazon rainforest has been utterly wrecked, almost to the point that every minute forest the size of 14 football fields vanish.
Once the trees are cut down and removed from the ground, there are no tree roots to trap rainwater, causing rainwater to run off the land. This contributes to floods, as the soil that is washed away can block rivers.
A few reasons why Amazon Rainforest trees are being cleared out or cut down are:
- Agriculture reasons
- To make and obtain paper or timber
- Construction purposes
- Poor migrants clearing land to claim it for themselves
Between May 2000 to August 2006, Brazil lost nearly 150,000 km^2 of the rainforest. Since 1970, over 600,000 km^2 of the Amazon rainforest has been utterly wrecked, almost to the point that every minute forest the size of 14 football fields vanish.
Once the trees are cut down and removed from the ground, there are no tree roots to trap rainwater, causing rainwater to run off the land. This contributes to floods, as the soil that is washed away can block rivers.