2.2.6 Sustainable Management of Tropical Rainforests

Importance of Managing Rainforests

• Tropical rainforests store ¼ of the world's carbon.
• Tropical rainforests provide fruit, spices, and rubber that are sold worldwide.
• The tropical rainforest is used as a tourist site and generates jobs and income.
• More than 20% of the world's oxygen supply is provided by the tropical rainforests.
• Tropical rainforests rich in biodiversity with 6 million different species.
• Around 25% of all medicines come from tropical rainforest plants.
• Tropical rainforests are home to 350 million people around the tropics, essential for shelter, health, and food, and are intrinsic to their cultures and traditions.
• ¼ of the world's fresh water is stored in the Amazon basin.
• Tropical rainforests are part of a global irrigation system that helps form clouds and distribute fresh water around the planet.

Importance of Managing Rainforests

Sustainable Management Strategies

Selective Logging

Only some trees (e.g., just the older ones) are cut down.

Selective logging of mature trees ensures the rainforest canopy is preserved.

• This method allows the forest to recover because younger trees gain more space and sunlight to grow.
• Planned and controlled logging ensures that for every tree logged another is planted.

Afforestation

New trees are planted to replace the ones that are cut down.

• Ensures there will be trees for people to use in the future.
• It's important that the same types of trees are planted that were cut down to keep the variety of trees for the future.
• In some countries, laws make logging companies replant when they clear an area.

Ecotourism

Ecotourism is environmentally friendly tourism where:

• People involved seek to protect the environment as much as possible.
• There is education for the visitor.
• Some of the profits go back into conserving the rainforest environment.
• Tourism is small-scale with low visitor densities.
• Local people are employed and involved.

Debt Reduction

Rainforests are often found in poorer countries that want to exploit them. Debt reduction or conservation swaps offer an alternative to poorer countries to reckless exploitation of their natural wealth.

• Debt swaps see poorer countries have portions of their debts wiped out or paid by richer nations or charities in exchange for promising to protect large parts of their rainforest.

International Agreements

There are also international agreements on the uses of tropical hardwoods and logging.

• The International Tropical Timber Agreement, set up in 2006, promotes the sustainable management of tropical timber-producing forests.