Half of Amazon rainforest tree species threatened by deforestation The Amazon basin is home to the world's great biodiversity. Deforestation doesn’t just wreak havoc for trees and humans. No life can exist without proper and sufficient source of food, water, and shelter. In the next 25 years, if deforestation continues at this rate, nearly half the world’s species of plants and animals will be destroyed or severely threatened. Logging and cattle farming are largely responsible for this vast amount of deforestation. – are global. 7 Oct , 2019 Blog. The Amazon rainforest is a humid broadleaf forest that stretches over 5,000,000 square kilometers in the Amazon Basin of South America. Deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest. However, the Amazon's plant and animal species are under threat by deforestation, mostly due to agriculture and cattle ranging. WWF has been working in the Amazon for 40 years and is at the forefront of efforts to protect the forests, species, and people that call it home. More species are found here than anywhere else. Protecting and conserving the Amazon, a place two-thirds the size of the US, is a big job. 137 species are extinct, due to … In the Amazon, where many of these species were once abundant, deforestation is a growing concern. Without sustainable agroforestry systems in place, we know that deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest can have a huge effect on people — both locally and globally. Deforestation in the Amazon rainforest is changing the world’s climate. Since the beginning of human history, people have cut down trees to make way for agricultural or commercial production, the construction of houses or to supply the required demands for timber. The forest, which is home to around one million indigenous people and three million species of plants and animals, has seen a record number of fires this year according to the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe), which detected 72,843 blazes … As the pressures afflicting the region grow in intensity, it is becoming increasingly clear that the price to be paid is not only loss of biodiversity and habitat – but also of … Today, you learn the reasons why and the effects it will have on the planet. It is essential to have integrated policies and concerted action across the region and beyond, as many of the pressures – oil and gas exploration, mining etc. Deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest. The reduction has slowed in recent years as a result of positive action by South American governments, but it remains a problem. Deforestation in this region is particularly rampant near more populated areas, roads and rivers, but even remote areas have been encroached upon when valuable mahogany, gold, and oil are discovered. It is under threat because of many factors including climate change, habitat destruction, deforestation and hunting. Sumatran rainforests are being destroyed and replaced by massive palm plantations to help feed human obsession with palm oil.