Amazon Deforestation

Every year an approximate 32 million acres of forest are destroyed which is equivalent to about 50,000 square miles (Kremen 1). These forests that are being torn down provide communities and wildlife with resources such as food, water, medicine, and shelter as well as breathable air. At the rate that forests are being cut down we are not able to replant them due to lack of funding and space. Many of the lands that were once forests are now homes to factories that encourage more deforestation. Although it may not seem relevant to some people of the United States, this country still benefits from rain forests around the world. The United State’s government does have some economic incentives for preserving forests in the U.S. and other countries,
If it were to be cut down North America would suffer from air pollution and the climate would be greatly affected. These factors do not give the government economic incentives to conserve the environments because they important to the people and wildlife in the surrounding communities and a necessity for clean air . In South America the Amazon River basin covers 40 percent of the continent and is home to the world’s largest rain forest. Since 2000 Brazil has established the world's largest network of protected areas, the majority of which are located in the Amazon region. Since 2004 the Brazilian government has also had a deforestation reduction program in place, which includes improved law enforcement, satellite monitoring, and financial incentives for respecting environmental laws (Butler). The United States has little to do with these efforts. However, the Brazilian government is also hoping to accelerate their economic growth. By doing this they have spent nearly 40 billion dollars on highways, railroads, power lines and other such projects. Environmental agencies are being kept out of the decision making process
The United States has passed the Rain Forest Conservation Act, though. This act allows deals to be made between the U.S. and 14 other countries and these deals will generate over $326 million for tropical forest conservation in these countries. The act allows the countries to pay off their debts owed to the United States government while they generate funds to pay for conservation activities. The Rain Forest Conservation Act, also known as the Tropical Forest Conservation Act, offers many benefits to the participating countries. It allows them to not only pay off their debts and conserve their forests, but also allows third parties to increase the amount of funds, and strengthens their civil societies. Aside from this act, little efforts are put forth from the government to protect forests (USAID). National governments often make large-scale natural resource decisions affecting conservation. Governments decide what land is made into parks and what is used for logging and other such activities. Yellowstone, the first national park, was established by the United States government in 1872. Since then fifty eight parks have been established, the latest being the Great Sand Dunes Park in 2004. These parks are spread across the United States mainland as well as Alaska and Hawaii and cover more than 84 million acres including land in District of Columbia,