The Financial Truth About Deforestation

Anyone raising concerns about deforestation is likely to find that people will try and shout them down with claims about “standing in the way of progress” and “not living in the real world” financially. But it is a little known fact that by keeping a thriving rainforest rather than taking what you can get from it and leaving it a wreck, you can make more money. This is something that needs to be said loud when arguing with an enviro-skeptic. It needs to be said loud, and often. The statistics are telling.

Recent statistics have shown that if rainforest land is converted to allow the raising of cattle, the land and operations will yield $60 an acre. If timber is harvested from the same land, it will be worth $400 an acre. However, if the same land is used for harvesting, taking its renewable resources in a sustainable way, it will yield more than $2400 per acre. So now who’s not living in the real world? Now who is standing in the way of progress?

The fact is that it is by pointing to the financial viability of saving the rainforests that the debate can be won conclusively. It takes a little bit more preparation to harvest natural resources than it does to cut them down and sell them off, that much is true. But once the preparation work has been done, there is only one side of the argument that is ignoring financial reality and it is not the environmental movement.

How Good Business Can Help The Rainforest

Business is often blamed for the mess that sometimes assaults the environment. Short-term thinking for a quick profit is often behind deforestation, as companies use the resources available at low prices to give them an easy boost. However, if business is done with the environment in mind, it can often be better for the planet and for the company involved. This much is being seen in the current popularity of rainforest products in pharmacies, supermarkets and online, and it is likely to continue.

Among the more popular rainforest products are toiletries. Shower gels and bubble baths made from plants that grow in the rainforests often have a light, pleasant smell and are usually kinder to the consumer’s skin and hair. For these products to continue being made, it is necessary to preserve the environment from which they are taken – so a thriving business selling rainforest products can wield both business and environmental muscle, and contribute to the retention of natural resources.

Herbal medicines, too, are often made with ingredients harvested from the rainforest – ingredients which can only be found in this setting. As these medicines are often very beneficial and have fewer side-effects, they are an important part of the health industry. A thriving health industry with a strong herbal sector can only be a good thing for the environment, so it is worth voting with your wallet if you want to keep the environment from being plundered by less conscientious businesses. A few dollars more every once in a while can be all it takes.

The Government Role In Deforestation

The green movement in politics has had mixed success. In certain European countries such as Germany, it has often been strong enough to take seats in Parliament, and has been a partner in coalition governments. In France it has been a frequent presence in the legislature, and it recently took its first seat in the British Parliament too. In most countries it is a minority presence, and in the US Presidential Election of 2000 it was blamed by many for taking key votes from Democrat candidate Al Gore, a noted environmentalist who ended up losing to George W Bush.

Nonetheless, the environment is still an issue on which majority parties will campaign – a government with a poor record on the environment will struggle to win an election, as people fear that these parties are likely to care less about their safety and health. It is important for governments to strike a balance between enabling business to thrive and protecting the environment – and this is something that often goes wrong when there is money on offer to allow the rainforests to be plundered – a government which thinks short-term will be glad to take the money and let the businesses do what they want.

It is worth noting that you have a vote that can be used to remind the politicians that the environment is a serious issue – if pressure is placed on the people who make the rules, they are likely to think twice before making a short-term, expedient decision.