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Bruce mucked in at a cattle ranch near Altamira, wrestling cows, inoculating calves, and having a brave (some might say foolish) attempt at rodeo. Cattle farming is big business in the Amazon - there are three times more cattle in the legal Amazon than there are people (64 million in 2003), and ranching is on the increase. It's a profitable enterprise because land prices are so low: pasture in the Amazon was five times lower than land around Sao Paolo in 2000. Most cattle produced are eaten elsewhere in Brazil, not locally in the Amazon, and Brazil is the world's top exporter, shipping over $3 billion worth of beef in 2006 and supplying nearly every country, including the UK. Cattle-ranching is a major factor in the deforestation of the Amazon. Most ranches are highly mechanised, and employ on average one person per 400 acres. Ranching may increase further in the future with the World Bank considering a loan of $90 million to increase beef capacity in Para - the Brazilian state of the eastern Amazon.

looks cool ANGUS

Deforestation of the Amazon numbers and statistics about. Also good graphs about where deforestation has occoured

Cattle For reasons similar to agriculture, ranching is not very adaptable to the land of the Amazon Rainforest. The grasses required to feed cattle, like the crops maintained in agriculture, are not resistant to the natural forces of the Amazon Basin and quickly deplete the nutrients of the surrounding soil. The nutrients that were once in the soil are removed from the ecosystem, shipped away as ground beef. Studies on land use have also suggested that the continuous movement of cattle on the unprotected land results in soil compacting, which increases the density of the soil material, resulting in decreased root penetration, water infiltration, and gas exchange.3 This means that larger flora, requiring a more extensive root system, are unable to grow under the compacted soil conditions, leaving the land for grass and woody shrub encroachment. The possible solutions to preventing nutrient loss are similar to those suggested for agricultural systems. Cattle ranching remains a very important industry in Brazil and is becoming even more vital to the Brazilian economy. The Brazilian commercial cattle herd is the largest in the world.4 Beef and milk are the two top livestock products in Brazil5 and exports of Brazilian beef grew to $1 billion (USD) in 2001. By 2003, Brazilian beef output is expected to reach 7.4 million tons, with exports of 925,000 tons. One problem in Brazilian beef exporting has been the existence of foot and mouth disease in some Brazilian states. This has caused the United States to be very stringent with Brazilian beef imports. However, the United States and Europe are still major importers of Brazilian beef.6 For every 1/4 lb hamburger consumed in the US from rainforest beef, about 55 square feet of rainforest was cleared. Although many fast food chains claim not to use rainforest beef, this claim is simply not valid. The USDA doesn't have an adequate system of labeling where beef is from. Thus beef grown in the rainforest can pass th

The perspective of the presidents

Amazon Rainforest Products There are many different products from the Amazon rainforest. Following are some important products and a brief explanation about them.

Video of the Brazilian government and deforestation

The Amazon rainforest is still under threat from cattle ranching. The forest is being cut down at an astonishingly fast rate as the need for grazing land increases. Since many can make a good living from cattle ranching the rainforest will continue to be destroyed.

A clear example of some bad things of mining in amazon

Specific to a certain project on the Xingu River in the Amazon. Has good facts about proportions of forest.

Rates of deforestation vary from one Amazon country to another, mostly because the factors that drive this process also vary across the region. In Brazil for instance, most clearing is carried out in large and middle-sized ranches for cattle pasture, whereas the role of small farmers clearing for agriculture is relatively more prevalent in other countries3.

Mercury found in the amazon rainforest