Saving What Remains
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Combatting Amazon Forest Fires Forest fires
have ravished the Amazon during the 1990s. Many of these fires - set by land clearers - spread accidentally into
virgin rainforest. In its assessment of the 1998 fires (RisQue98), the Woods Hole Research Center put forth some
suggestions on how to reduce burning in the Amazon. The most
fundamental step that needs to be taken in not just the Amazon, but all forests worldwide, is a new rural development
model which restricts access to the majority of forests and creates a situation of land scarcity, resulting in
higher land prices and increased investment in forest resources. Unfortunately this type of reform is difficult
in regions where subsistence farmers create most of the damage because it does not solve their land problems or
poverty. This reform is most effective where forest clearers are large commercial interests. |
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Copyright Rhett Butler 1994-2005 |