Cattle Ranching In the Amazon
Ayush Dutta
What is the problem?
Cattle ranching is a big problem...a HUGE problem, on a large scale. The number of orders of Big Macs and Whoppers all over the world is causing big companies to have to make space for all of this cattle. In South America, they have run out of empty space, so they have to cut into their most prestigious rain forest: The Amazon. The Amazon is going down, and going down fast, and it needs to stop.
The Pros
The pros of cattle ranching are mainly economical. The cattle industry is an enormous part of Brazil's overall income. According to MIT, exports of Brazilian beef grew to $1 billion in 2001. Cattle ranching has also employed thousands of people all around Brazil.
Cons
The cons of cattle ranching are environmental and they greatly overpower the economic pros. According to Planetsave.com, Brazil is currently the fourth biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, 75% of which stem from deforestation. Additionally, Phys.com calculates that by 2050, half of the Amazon Rain Forest will be destroyed. This could be devastating to one of the most beautiful rain forests on planet Earth
The Beautiful Amazon Rain Forest
Deforestation could destroy one of the most beautiful places on the planet.
MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!!
Is billions of dollars worth the cost?
It's Not Improving
The graph shows the expansion of cattle ranching in the Amazon steadily increasing
A Solution
One possible solution is cut down on cattle demand. This would be the most beneficial solution because it saves the Amazon from deforestation and still keeps the cattle industry running. If the U.S. and other countries decide to not consume as much beef, ranchers wouldn't need more space for cattle.
What You Can Do!
You can contact many wildlife protection foundations and see what kind of impact you can make there, but perhaps the most significant thing anyone can do is to not consume products with beef. This will be a small part of a change to save the Amazon Rain forest.
Bibliogrophy
Link to Noodletools: http://www.noodletools.com/noodlebib/mybib.php?highlight=2659657