Development in the Amazon
Large scale development in the Amazon
Large scale development projects started in the Amazon after most of the
area became part of Brazil’s territory in 1967. The Brazil’s Polamazonia
Plan in the 1970s aimed to open up the Amazon to development. This
included encouraging and funding the following large scale development
projects.
•Road and rail development
•Logging
•Ranching
•Hydroelectric Power (HEP)
•Mining
•Settlement
Developments in the Amazon
Carajas Project
Iron ore,
copper,
manganese,
nickel,
bauxite,
gold, tin,
lead and
zinc were all
found at
Carajas.
Belem
Sao Luis
Tucurui
rail link
Carajas
0 100km
TransAmazonian
Highway
Mining
There are two types of miners in the Amazon –
1) miners that work in the official mines which are regulated by the
Brazilian government
2) illegal miners such as the gold prospectors (‘garimpeiros’)
Both sets of miners have caused damage to the ecosystem by cutting down
large areas of forest and by using chemicals to purify their metals. However,
the official mines have made some efforts to repair some of the environmental
damage they have caused. For example, at a large bauxite mine on the
Trombetas River in the state of Para, the mining company has stopped
dumping their tailings (sludge from washing the ore) into the river and they
have started a reforestation project.
The garimpeiros are more difficult to monitor. They use enormous amounts of
mercury to purify the gold and this toxic metal is released into the rivers and is
absorbed into the food chain.
Slash and Burn is used to clear the land for
settlement and ranching.
Logging
Tucurui Dam
Tucurui Dam was built between 1976 and 1984, on the Lower Tocantins River
in the state of Para, approximately 300km south of Belem.
The reservoir created upstream of the dam is over 2000km2. The dam will
produce more than 4000 MW of electricity.
Tucurui Dam – cost $5 billion
Describe the dam’s impact on the landscape.
Road
River Tocantins
Tucurui
Dam
HEP
plant
flooded an area
5 times the size
of the
Isle of Wight
Amazonian
Indian villages
Before Tucurui Dam
After Tucurui Dam
Tucurui Dam
Tucurui
Carajas
Match the statement with the correct person
The dam has stopped the migration
of fish up and downstream.
Amazonian Indian
This electricity will be used to power the
mines at Carajas and the smelting industries
at Belem. These industries will provide jobs.
Fishermen
The flooding displaced thousands of us living by the
river. Moreover, chemicals used to defoliate the
vegetation before flooding have contaminated the
water and caused illness.
Miner
The dam has stopped silt travelling downstream. This
silt is a natural fertiliser. We will have to buy chemical
fertilisers or clear more forest.
Farmer
Who gained and who lost out from its construction?
The cost of building dams…
Then the water in the lake and what the lake releases,
Is crawling with infected snails and water born diseases.
There’s a hideous locust breeding ground when the water
level’s low…
by K E Boulding
Why was road building such as the TransAmazonian Highway vital to all
these large scale development projects?
Deforestation
Less
vegetation
Soil becomes
infertile
Fewer leaves fall
Broken
Nutrient cycle
Less nutrients
enter the soil
Less decomposition
(breaking down) of litter by
termites, fungi and bacteria
What impact does road building have on the
Amazon’s ecosystem?
Organise these statements into the flow chart below.
There is more than one correct order.
it is difficult to
grow crops
the area become
more accessible
there is no vegetation
to intercept the rain
other large scale
developments
such as mining
come to the area
trees are cut down
more trees
are cut down
road is built
the nutrient cycle is
broken and so the
soil becomes infertile
people migrate to the
area
the soil is washed away
Role Play
Should large scale development be
allowed in the Amazon?
You will be allocated a role from the following:
•Brazilian Government
•Hydroelet (large HEP company)
•FUNAI (government organisation for the protection of Amazonian
Indians)
•World Medical Organisation (concerned with the protection of
plants for medical research)
•Greentours (a holiday company concerned with providing holidays
that nether harm the environment nor the local people)
Research your role carefully and then prepare a presentation to explain why
you are for or against large scale development in the Amazon.
Read the next 6 slides.
Which of the above groups will be against large scale development?
Brazilian Government
‘The income gap between the richest and the poorest in Brazil is
getting wider. The shanty towns in our large cities such as Rio de
Janeiro, Belo Horizonte and Sao Paulo are expanding and their
residents lack basic facilities such as electricity and clean water.
Our interest on the debt is growing each year and we need to
invest in our industries if we are to ever pay back this money.
Developing the Amazon can generate some of this necessary
investment.’
Fact File
Capital - Brazilia
Population – 162 million
GNP per capita - $3,370
Debt - $1,153 million
Literacy – 80%
Tourism – over 1 million visitors per year
FUNAI
(Fundaao Nacional do Indio)
‘FUNAI is the government agency set up to protect the rights of
the Amazonian Indians. We believe that most large scale
developments have a negative impact on the Amazon’s
ecosystem and on the traditional nomadic lifestyle of the
Amazonian Indians. For example, approximately 6,000 Indians
were left landless by the Grand Carajas Project, especially by
the Tucurui dam.
We would like to see more sustainable developments such as in
the Xingu Indian Park where Kayapo villages have entered into a
partnership with the Body Shop. The Kayapo collect Brazil nuts
and extract the oil in their villages by using a press. They then
sell this oil directly to the Body Shop for use in toiletries.
In order to protect the Amazonian Indians’ rights to the land, we
want further areas of the rainforest set up as Indian reserves.’
Hydroelet
‘Hydro Electric Power (HEP) is a renewable form of energy. This means
that unlike coal, oil and gas this type of energy does not run out.
Brazil gets 92.5% of its energy from HEP and the demand for energy is
rising. Hydroelet plans to build more dams, like Tucurui, in the Amazon
to harness the fast flowing rivers in this area.
Hydroelet believes that this electricity will not only benefit industries all
over Brazil but will also provide energy to satisfy the country’s growing
population.’
World Medical Organisation
‘Only 1,100 species have been investigated out of 365,000
possible species in the Amazon.
On average, an important new drug has been found for every
125 species investigated. We believe that areas should be set
aside for medical research.’
‘Catclaw Acacia’ is a climbing
vine, found in the Amazon, and it
is being studied for its potential
against cancer and AIDs.
Quinine was discovered in The
Amazon.
It is an anti- malaria drug from
the bark of the cinchona tree
(and also an ingredient in tonic
water!).
How can the Brazilian Government
and the Amazonian Indians benefit
from the discoveries?
Internet Link – biodiversity
http://library.thinkquest.org/20248/
Greentours
Ecotourism in the Amazon
Ecotourism is sustainable, low density tourism which safeguards the
natural environment and meets the needs of the host population.
‘At Greentours, visitors stay in an
Amazonian village or in the small
lodges which are built from local
resources. The visitors can
undertake conservation work as
part of their holiday.
Greentours feel that unlike the
large scale developments, their
tours will generate money for the
Amazonian Indians without
destroying the Amazon’s
ecosystem.’
Internet Link – ecotourism
www.brazilianadventure.com
www.brazilnature.com/inges/index.html
Greentours
simple tourist lodge
boat trip with local guide
What are the sustainable alternatives to
large scale development?
SUSTAINABLE development involves activities that
preserve and enhance the beauty and resources of
an area for future generations.
Name one activity in the Amazon that is ‘sustainable’.
Investigate - How can the Brazilian government profit from the
Amazon without large scale development?
Internet links –
www.ran.org/
www.greenforce.org/
www.greenpeace.org/