Conservation

From Chris Mooney comes this pathetic story of the Bush administration's continued efforts to erode science. It seems the Fish and Wildlife Service has announced that species recovery plans under the Endangered Species Act can only use genetic science that was in place at the time a species was listed. So if a species was listed in 1975 but today's genetic techniques show that it actually consists of two subspecies, too bad. Managers can only 1975 data. This is incredibly stupid if you assume that the purpose of the Endangered Species Act is to help endangered and threatened species recover. If, as in the Bush administration, the ESA is a nuisance to be ignored when possible, then the new interpretation makes sense. Since the revolution in molecular genetics really only took off in the late 1970's, there is a vast amount of genetic techniques and information that postdates the listing of many species.

This morning is "Rainforest Rally" at my son's elementary school, a celebration of rainforests and expression of concern. So the news of events in the Brazilian Amazon is especially disturbing. Loss of rainforest in the Amazon to agriculture is accelerating. In spite of strong laws to protect remaining rainforests, the Brazilian government is unable to stop illegal logging and land clearing.

Rainforest clearing increased by 6% in last year's satellite surveys. The major cause is a booming national economy, but high worldwide demand for soybeans is a factor. Annual revenues from soybean exports now exceed those from coffee and sugar, Brazil's mainstay commodities for many years.

The government, despite passing strong laws and attempting to enforce them, is complicit in the conversion of land. BR-163, the major highway that bisects the Amazon from north to south, is being paved. The history of road encroachments is clear - more roads provide easier access which accelerates land conversion.

Corruption plays a major role. The governor of Mato Gross is also the largest soybean producer in the country. As in Indonesia and other countries where rainforest destruction is accelerating, the combination of poverty, greed and official corruption is fatal to efforts to conserve rainforests. Countries like Malaysia (at least Peninsular Malaysia) with strong economies and a tradition of fairly clean government are better able to combat greedy interests and at least slow the rate of rainforest conversion and illegal logging.

Where do the logs from illegal logging and land clearing go? While domestic consumption is significant, much of this wood is probably finding its way onto the international market, and is therefore winding up in the US. Is any going to China?