What Causes Deforestation?

Deforestation in Canada, the United States, the tropics, and elsewhere stems from a great many factors. Analysts have traditionally viewed deforestation in Third World nations as a natural social response to poverty, unsustainable population growth, and landlessness. A new study by economist Robert Repetto of the World Resources Institute, however, puts much of the blame on governmental policies. Repetto notes that governments largely determine how a nation's forests will be used. Even governments that are committed to conservation, however, often have contradictory policies.

Unfortunately, many governments - the United States and Canada included - believe that forest protection can only occur at the expense of economic development. Repetto argues that the misuse of forests actually costs countries billions of dollars per year. Among the hardest hit are the poor countries of the developing world.

One problem is that governments have typically sold timber below market value to logging companies. Critics say that many countries lose money because they routinely auctions off timber rights to land that is unsuitable for logging. In such cases the highest bids are often lower than the government's cost for surveys, boundary markings, paperwork, and auctions. Below-cost timber sales are also a form of public subsidy to the lumber industry. Selling timber below cost discourages conservation by companies and individuals.

Many governmental policies here and abroad encourage excessive cutting of forests, profiteering, and an unsustainable exploitation of forest resources. One common problem in many Third World countries is that they restrict the export of raw wood by international companies in order to create jobs at home and encourage economic development of domestic wood processing industries. These nations hope that bans or heavy taxes that limit raw-wood exports will result in an increase in the export of finished wood products (for example, furniture).

Another problem is short-term contracts. In many Third World nations, 35 years or more are required for a stand of trees to recover from logging, but contracts are written for only 20 years. This arrangement discourages companies from protecting forests because they have no long-term interest in their concession.

Economic policies can also influence deforestation. Heavy borrowing from international banks and industrialized nations has created enormous debt in the Third World. To pay back the loans, countries often encourage unsustainable forest practices that result in widespread cutting.

Government tax policies also encourage deforestation. For instance, in Brazil, the government has offered income tax credits to investors in cattle ranches for up to 75% of the project's cost, and for up to 50% of a company's tax liabilities (the taxes owed in a given year). Cattle ranches have been a leading cause of deforestation in the Amazon. By 1980 they accounted for more than 72% of Brazil's deforestation. Ironically, many of the projects subsidized by tax credits could not turn a profit without these generous subsidies. Repetto estimates that this policy costs the Brazilian government about $3 billion a year.

Canadian forests suffer because of several legal loopholes. The Canadian government, in fact, has long encouraged deforestation with little regard for the environment. Making matters worse, Canadian citizens have little recourse when it comes to fighting harmful timber operations. As a result of these and other factors, the forests of British Columbia are falling at a rate far greater than the estimated annual sustainable yield. The pace of deforestation has nearly tripled since I960. Ninety-four percent of the forest in British Columbia lies on public lands, and mere are practically no institutional channels by which citizens can influence forest management. Citizens do not even have the right to sue to stop harmful forest cutting. As a result, many citizens have taken the law into their own hands and have turned out to block timber companies by forming human roadblocks or camping in the path of road construction. Local communities are worried about the loss of recreational opportunities and many people who turn out to block the bulldozers are anglers, artists, small business owners, and so on.

To solve our problems requires new policies, individual actions, and a new attitude toward natural resources. In general, two strategies can be employed: increasing supply and decreasing demand.

Discussion questions:

1. How do you understand the term “deforestation”?

2. Where does deforestation occur?

3. What are the main causes of deforestation?

4. What solutions can you recommend to solve the problem of deforestation?

5. What ways can be applied to satisfy the growing need for wood and wood products? Which of you ideas are most ecologically sound?

Exercises to the text:

I. Translate the words combinations from English into Russian:

To stem from, Third World nations, social response, population growth, World Resources Institute, contradictory policies, economic development, poor countries, developing world, domestic wood processing industries.

II. Choose the Russian equivalents to the English word combinations:

III. Fill in the blanks with the words given below:

1. Analysts have traditionally viewed deforestation in Third World nations as a natural social response to … .

2. Even … that are committed to conservation, however, often have contradictory policies.

3. One problem is that governments have typically sold … below market value to logging companies.

4. Economic policies can also influence … .

5. … do not even have the right to sue to stop harmful forest cutting.

Citizens, timber, poverty, deforestation, governments

IV. Choose the right English equivalent to the words in brackets:

1. Governments largely (определять) how a nation's forests will be used.

a) put

b) designate

c) determine

2. Many governments believe that forest protection can only occur at the expense of economic (развитие).

a) maturity

b) development

c) education

3. One common problem in many Third World countries is that they restrict the export of (необработанный лесоматериал) by international companies.

a) untrained forest

b) uncultivated wood

c) raw wood

4. These nations hope that bans or heavy taxes (приведут) in an increase in the export of finished wood products.

a) result

b) will result

c) would result

5. Ninety-four percent of the forest in British Columbia lies on (общественные земли).

a) eusocial lands

b) sociable lands

c) public lands

V. Translate from Russian into English:

1. Страны теряют миллиарды долларов при неправильном использовании леса.

2. В некоторых регионах на восстановление деревьев требуется 35 лет.

3. Животноводческое хозяйство является ведущей причиной вырубки леса.

4. Вырубка леса увеличилась в три раза с 1960 года.

5. Для решения этой проблемы необходима новая политика.

LITERATURE

1. Brown B. Mountain in the clouds / B.Brown. – New York: Simon and Schuster. Gripping account of deforestation practices in the Pacific Northwest and how they decimated salmon fisheries, 1982. – 345 c.

2. Андрианова Л.Н. Учебник английского языка /Л.Н. Андрианова. – М.: Высшая школа, 1988. – 342 с.

3. Бонди Е.А. Английский язык /Е.А. Бонди. - М.: «Высшая школа», 1988. – 432 с.

4. Бонк Н.А. Учебник английского языка. Ч.1 / Н.А. Бонк, Г.А. Котий, Н.А. Лукьянова. – М.: Высшая школа, 2006. – 639 с.

5. Голицынский Ю.Б. Грамматика: Сборник упражнений / Ю.Б. Голицынский. – К.: КАРО, 2006. – 544с.

6. Ямпольский Л.С. Учебник английского языка / Л.С. Ямпольский. – Львов, 1981. – 356 с.

7. Сборник разговорных тем для студентов технологического факультета / авт. Т.Н. Иващенко, рец. Н.В. Короткая, З.Е. Ефимова; КГМТУ. – Керчь, 2007. – 85 с.

8. Методические указания по самостоятельной работе с текстами для студентов технологического факультета дневной и заочной формы обучения / авт. З.Е. Ефимова, рец. Т.Н. Иващенко, Н.В. Короткая; КГМТУ. – Керчь, 2010. – 56 стр.

© Анна Александровна Заболотная

МЕТОДИЧЕСКИЕ УКАЗАНИЯ