Thanks for this report Rhett. I'm constantly puzzled by the assertion that planting on degraded pasture land will not affect the standing forest. When crops push out the cows, where will they go? To newly deforested land, of course.

Lou Gold

Hi Lou,

Some people argue that intensification of cattle production is the key. Of course this raises other issues. Where does supplemental feed come from ... crops produced on forest land? What about the effects of higher livestock densities? Does this mean more antibiotics will be needed? What about higher concentrations of waste? So it's complicated. I touch on this in http://news.mongabay.com/2009/0215-beef.html

Rhett

I've been to a meeting on the National Economic and Social Development Bank that managens the Amazon Fund created by Lula. They wanted to consult experts on sustainable development of the Amazon Region. There was consensus among the wisest experts that extensive cattle raising should be banned and intensive cattle raising is not competitive in the region.

Rhett,

I've assembled a Flickr set of photos showing recent sugarcane planting and ethanol refining in Amazônia. The location is the municipality (county) of Capixaba in the western state of Acre. Capixaba borders on Xapuri, the home ground of the Chico Mendes movement.

Link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/visionshare/sets/72157605469763958/

lou

Hello, i am a Paulownia tree farmer and Paulownia is the key for rebuilding the degraded soil. In addition to rebuilding the soil, the foliage is excellent fodder for the cattle, and once the plantation is established the cattle are free to roam once again. The manure will assist in fertalizing the paulownias, and the trees will offer shade for the cattle. You can also intercrop between the rows of paulownia trees for extra income.

Paulownia trees are extremely fast growers and can be harvested over and over because they grow back from the original trunk. Their root systems are huge and they go down as much as 40 feet. This allows the trees to reach water and nutrients that other trees and plants can't reach. The wood is a lightweight hardwood and has wonderful uses. Do some research if you find this interesting.