Gantz 1

Josh Gantz

Assignment #1

In a political environment where our Earth’s environment and sustainability are some of the

main and most heavily debated topics, the Amazon rainforest is a consistently recurring talking

point. Regarded as the largest rainforest on our planet and one of the most unique hubs for

biological diversity by all fields of science, people are right to be concerned about the rapid rate

of the land’s deforestation. Many times, especially as outsiders, it is hard not to blame this loss of

forest on Brazil and other surrounding countries, but there are influences much closer to home

that have some of the larger effects on the issue.

While it is generally accepted that Brazilian farmers are the ones who physically are cutting

these trees down, the foreign forces which drive this activity often go unnoticed. Specifically, the

American companies, Cargill and Bunge, are two of the biggest propagators of commercialized

agriculture in the Amazon region. These companies encourage and sometimes even pay for the

development of agriculture in remote Amazonian towns in order to create a consistent and cheap

source of soy which they can later buy (Tabuchi, Rigby, and White). Considering how elusive

this opportunity would be for someone in rural Brazil, much of the blame can be placed on the

companies themselves who essentially are colonizing the potential economic resources in other

areas. Along with these privately-owned industries, more national powers like China also are

actively promulgating deforestation here in order to buy raw material, livestock, and agricultural

products at cheap prices (Fearnside 326). Opportunities to expand an already struggling Brazilian

economy seem to have become irresistible regardless of the environmental backlash. So, once

again, the blame cannot be placed upon only one culprit. When asked about plans to mitigate
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deforestation in an interview, Brazil’s Minister of the Environment said, “we are very

uncomfortable with the bad news that we had a rise in deforestation,” blaming their lack of

intervention on a lack of funding from their suffering government (Tabuchi, Rigby, and White).

While this answer seems somewhat proactive, Bolivian Evo Morales, the president of another

country with access to the Amazon, stood fast with his plan to continue government supported

deforestation to boost their economy and secure food security for his citizens (Tabuchi, Rigby,

and White).

When looking at this issue, it is easy to be ignorant and believe that it is Brazil’s direct fault

that the Amazon is shrinking. However, after further observation, one can see that there is an

intricate spiderweb of culprits to blame the increasingly dire situation on. Motivating all of these

contributors, though, is the allure of economic benefit which consistently has trumped the

importance of our environment.

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Fearnside, Philip M. “Amazonian Forest Loss and the Long Reach of China’s Influence.” 30 Oct.

2012.

Tabuchi, Hiroko, et al. “Amazon Deforestation, Once Tamed, Comes Roaring Back.” The New

York Times, 24 Feb. 2017, www.nytimes.com.