Rainforests under threat

In the next 24 hours, deforestation will release as much CO₂ into the atmosphere as 8 million people flying from London to New York. That’s about 100 acres cleared every minute to create farmland for crops such as soya or palm oil, or for cattle ranching.

It’s not difficult to understand why this happens. Soya, beef and palm oil prices are rising and landowners can make quick profits. But these are short-term gains. Rainforest soil is thin and fragile. Once cleared, its goodness is gone in five years.

On a global scale, turning rainforests into timber and farmland makes no sense at all, environmentally or financially. Rainforest has an international carbon value far in excess of its farming worth, and when managed sustainably it can generate a good income for the local economy. This is where you – and – come in…