Deforestation for cattle pastureland near Puerto Maldanado. (Photo by R. Butler)
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CATTLE and LAND SPECULATION
OVERVIEW
Clearing for pastureland and land speculation purposes is a major cause of tropical forest loss, especially in
Latin America. Cattle are an attractive investment for Amazonian farmers because they are a highly liquid capital
asset with low marginal costs once forest has been cleared. Cattle are used to establish land claims on otherwise
"unoccupied" rainforest land and can be used as a hedge against inflation.
Pastureland is usually cleared by the burning of secondary growth and land previously used for subsistence agriculture.
This burning is especially dangerous under dry conditions when fires can spread into neighboring old-growth rainforest
and cause considerable damage.
ACTIONS
Addressing forest degradation and clearing for pastureland is difficult, but important due to the severe soil leaching
and erosion under traditional grazing systems. Rainforest clearing for cattle can be immediately reduced by eliminating
tax incentives and land policies that encourage such activities. Productivity can be increased on existing pastureland
by introducing agroforestry techniques. Through intercropping—the strategy of planting perennial trees on pastureland—ranchers can diversify their income while reducing soil erosion and maintaining higher soil quality. At the
same time these patches retain considerably higher levels of biological diversity than bare fields. Livestock also
benefits from the shade and adds fertilizer to the base of the trees as they take refuge from the sun.
Such a system should be tested on small holdings before being applied to large pastures. While some problems are
foreseeable with such a system—notably the need for more management and fire control—it could be an important method for
conserving some biodiversity and forest function on pasturelands.
- Can cattle ranchers and soy farmers save the Amazon rainforest? June 6, 2007
John Cain Carter believes the only way to save the Amazon is through the market. Carter is a Texas rancher who moved to the heart of the Amazon 11 years ago with his Brazilian wife, Kika, and founded what is perhaps the most innovative organization working in the Amazon, Aliança da Terra. Carter says that by giving producers incentives to reduce their impact on the forest, the market can succeed where conservation efforts have failed.
- Saving the Amazon Rainforest Through Agricultural Certification June 3, 2005
A new certification scheme hopes to provide a link between producers and environmentalists by promoting standards of responsible practice that appease both sides. If the project goes as planned, all Brazilian agricultural products will carry a seal that reflects health, environmental, and social standards.
Review questions:
- Why is cattle grazing popular in the Amazon?
- What is intercropping?
- How can the impact of cattle be minimized in the rainforest?
[print version | spanish
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CONTENTS
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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
INTERACT
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Recent news
More big companies disclosing impacts on forests
(02/07/2012) More companies are reporting on the impact of their operations on global forests, finds a new report. Eighty-seven global corporations disclosed their "forest footprint" in 2011, according to the third Forest Footprint Disclosure (FFD), which asks companies to report on their impact on forests based on their use of five commodities: soy, palm oil, timber and pulp, cattle, and biofuels. This is a 11 percent rise from the companies that reported in 2010, including the first reports by companies such as the Walt Disney Company, Tesco UK, and Johnson & Johnson. However a number of so-called "green" companies continue to refuse to disclose, including Patagonia, Stonyfield Farms, and Whole Foods Markets Inc.
Colonization program remains important driver of deforestation in Brazil
(01/10/2012) Government-subsidized colonization of the Amazon rainforest remains an important driver of forest loss in Brazil, but has mixed economic value, argues a paper published in Biological Conservation.
Brazil passes controversial Forest Code reform environmentalists say will be 'a disaster' for the Amazon
(12/06/2011) The Brazilian Senate tonight passed controversial legislation that will reform the country's 46-year-old Forest Code, which limits how much forest can be cleared on private lands. Environmentalists are calling the move "a disaster" that will reverse Brazil's recent progress in slowing deforestation in the world's largest rainforests.
Volcano and cloud forests conserved in Ecuador
(12/05/2011) Conservation organizations and the Ecuadorian government have succeeded in securing over 250,000 acres (106,000 hectares) of cloud forest and grasslands surrounding the Antisana Volcano for protection. The area, long-used for cattle ranching, is home to Andean condors (Vultur gryphus), cougars (Puma concolor), Andean fox (Lycalopex culpaeus), silvery grebes (Podiceps occipitalis), black-faced ibis (Theristicus melanopis), spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus), and three species of endangered frogs. The protected area stretches from 3,900 feet (1,188 meters) to 18,700 feet (5,699 meters) above sea level.
African cattle benefit from socializing with wild grazers during the wet season
(11/08/2011) Mingling with wild grazers, such as zebra, is better for cattle than dining alone—during the wet season, at least—according to researchers in Kenya. Their new study crumbles the longstanding assumption that social grazing always leads to food fights. Kenya’s wildlife population is in a critical decline, partly due to kill-offs by ranchers who see zebra, wildebeest, antelope and other grazers strictly as competition for their cattle. But scientists at the Mpala Research Center in central Kenya suspected there might be natural accords between grazers.
More news on cattle ranching
More rainforest news
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