Decreasing the Life of the Earth One Tree at a Time

The article “Corruption in Peru Aids Cutting of Rain Forest” by William Neuman and Anita Zarate can be found in The New York Times. Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/19/world/americas/corruption-in-peru-aids-cutting-of-rain-forest.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=earth

http://myweb.unomaha.edu/~kfandry/Latin_America/PicturePage.html

It is a known fact that deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest is a severe environmental issue. What may not be known is that most trees are cut down illegally. In the article listed above, it is stated that “as much as 80 percent of Peru’s logging exports are harvested illegally”, a statistic which would not be the same without corrupt government officials. These officials take bribes from loggers and allow them to get away with their illegal actions. If nothing is done to protect the rainforest in Peru all of the trees there will be gone before we know it.

According to an unidentified military officer who works to try to prevent logging, the problem is “uncontrollable”. Authorities are paid by loggers to approve or make false paperwork which allows the wood to be exported from the country. An environmental prosecutor, Francisco Berrospi, spoke of another prosecutor simply telling him to take the bribes offered to him and he would “get enough to build a house and buy a nice car.” Apparently, these authorities are not aware of the consequences which will occur because of their actions, or inactions, as they are watching the deforestation happening and not doing anything.

Clearly, something has to be done about this issue. If it keeps happening, it will not be for long, as there will be no trees left to cut. This reminds me of The Lorax, in the fact that the only way the Once-ler could see that what he was doing was wrong was seeing the Earth crumble. One company representing the Once-ler in reality is Lumber Liquidators. The flooring business has been linked to illegally-cut wood from around the world, in places such as Russia. And even though demand for floors will always exist due to the fact they exist in millions of houses worldwide, companies should not be using an amount more than what is legal. These precautions were set to protect the Earth, and the companies should learn before it is too late.

The deforestation of the rainforest may help a few companies in the money they make, but every organism on Earth is affected by the action. Trees and other plants are producers which perform photosynthesis, and are the basis of each food chain. With each tree that is cut down, there is less energy for each individual consumer, and for some there will not be enough. Also, when performing photosynthesis, producers use carbon dioxide and water to make glucose and oxygen. As they take in carbon dioxide, they are helping to reduce the amount of the greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, which causes global warming. They also release oxygen into the air, and with factories burning fossil fuels (a form of carbon) and trees being cut down, there will be less oxygen available.

Overall, something needs to be done. The people harming the environment, whether it is the authorities or loggers, need to be educated. According to Lucila Pautrat, director of the Peruvian Society for Eco-development, “There is a lack of interest, a negligence on the part of the authorities who regulate the forestry sector. And, meanwhile, the wood keeps going out.” What Pautrat is saying is important. Even if the problem is simply reduced (and not solved completely), it could keep being reduced over time until the issue is no longer relevant. Something new also has to be tried, as each attempt as of yet to stop the corruption has not worked. I do not agree that the problem is “uncontrollable”, as there is a solution to every problem. However, the world may simply have to wait until the problem becomes so bad that the deforestation simply has to stop.