Threats To The Rainforest
Number of species in extinction

We are all affected!!

The rainforests of the world are disappearing at a rate of 80 acres per minute. Climatic and other environmental changes will occure if this continuse. The destruction of the rainforests cause carbon dioxide to be released, which in trun allows the green house effect to occure. The green house effect raises the temperatures all around the world, and can cause ice caps to melt. When the ice caps melt, the sea level rises, causing major flooding around the world.

Why???


Farmers in the rainforest countries are often poor and can't afford to buy land. These farmers clear the rainforest land to grow their crops. Due to the poor soil found in the rainforest farmers can not reuse the same land. Ranching is also a major cause of the distruction of rainforests. Ranchers clear large areas of rainforest to become pastrues for their cattle. Another major reason is logging. Treesf from the rainforest are cut down to build houses, furnature, and paper. 

 
Large oil companys also use the land in 
search for oil. These companys often trick
and bribe the Indians into signing over rights 
to their rainforest land

Why Should I Help?

 Rainforests make up 25 percent of the worlds forests
A single hectare in the rainforest can host between 100-150 differnt tree species.
Humans inhabit the rainfroest. A total of 50 million.
Rainforests are a vital source of medicine. 25% of all modern drugs came form the rainforest.
       Such medications as Morphine, Emetine and Atropine. Researchers in 1991 found that Twigs
       from a Malaysian gum tree blocked the spread of the aids virus in human cells. When the
       doctors came back to retrive this tree it was gone. This tree had been cut down. None like it
       have ever been found.
With out rainforests, the water circulation of the atmosphere will alter weather patterns
       thousand of miles away.
Rainforest trees hold carbon dioxide. When the rainforests are gone carben is relased and
       causes a green house affect and global warming.
Fires in the amazon cause 500 millin tones of carbon to be admitted in the atmosphere
      anually. This is 10% of the worlds total annual atmopheric emmissons.
Distruction of the rainforest causes 50 species to be extinct per day.


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