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Global Climate Change Digest
A Guide to Information on Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depletion
Published July 1988 through June 1999

FROM VOLUME 3, NUMBER 4, APRIL 1990

PERIODICALS...
RAINFORESTS

Item #d90apr78

"Fruits of the Rainforest," G. Prance, New Sci., 42-45, Jan. 13, 1990.

Rainforests contain more species than any other habitat on our planet. Understanding, cataloguing and protecting them is essential for our future existence. As new markets develop, fruits and nuts will soon be worth more than timber and would make the future of the forest more secure.

Item #d90apr79

"Are We Missing the Grass for the Trees," P. De Groot, ibid., 29-30, Jan. 6, 1990.

According to a study by the United Nations Environment Programme, tropical grasslands turn far more CO₂ into carbohydrates than suspected, equalling or even exceeding the productivity of tropical rainforests. Natural tropical grasslands are between three and five times as productive as indicated by previous research, which ignored growth in the roots and rhizomes. Converting grasslands to agriculture tends to decrease this productivity and CO₂ uptake.

Item #d90apr80

"The Amazonian Forests and Climatic Stability," L.C.B. Molion, The Ecologist, 19(6), 211-213, Nov./Dec. 1989. (See PROF. PUBS./GEN. INTEREST, this Global Climate Change Digest issue--Apr. 1990.)

Item #d90apr81

"World Forests," B.W. Walsh, Amer. For., 95(11/12), 28-31, 65 ff., Nov./Dec. 1989.

Amid alarming reports of deforestation and dire global warming, signs are emerging that temperate forests are expanding. Reviews the state of forests world-wide and makes projections for the next decade of forest management.

Item #d90apr82

"Pride and Protest in Malaysia," K. Rubeli, New Sci., 49-52, Oct. 21, 1989.

Gives an overview of forestry policy within Malaysia, where individual states control land use, and of international influence there. Foreign governments and conservation groups are quick to condemn countries that cut down their rainforests, but attitudes must change on both sides. Suggests how positive reinforcement to show benefits of rainforests would encourage preservation.

Item #d90apr83

"Anglo-Brazilian Forest Projects Mark Climate of Cooperation," D. Macklin, ibid., p. 24, Oct. 14, 1989.

Scientists from Brazil and Britain will cooperate in a research project to study how tropical forest destruction affects climate.

Item #d90apr84

"A Catbird's Seat on Amazon Destruction," F. Golden, Science, pp. 201-202, Oct. 13, 1989.

Discusses the expanded role being played by Brazil's space agency INPE (National Space Research Institute) in monitoring the nation's environment by satellite, its cooperation with U.S. scientists through NASA, and its quarrels with the World Bank over estimates of forest destruction.

Item #d90apr85

"The Tropical Chainsaw Massacre," S. Oldfield, ibid., 54-57, Sep. 23, 1989.

Buyers and sellers of tropical timber have the power to slow the destruction of forests and conserve species threatened with extinction. In Britain, about 200 retailers have stopped selling items made of tropical wood that has not come from properly managed forests. The tropical timber industry itself is taking increasingly positive actions towards conservation. Governments are awakening to long-term benefits of preserving tropical forests.

Item #d90apr86

"Kill or Cure? Remedies for the Rainforest," F. Pearce, ibid., 40-43, Sep. 16, 1989.

There is more than one way to save a rainforest. To effect changes, parties must promote commercial development of the rainforest that is in tune not only with short-term needs of governments and commercial conglomerates but also long-term needs of the forest dwellers.

Item #d90apr87

"Rain Forest Products: Growing Profits," The Economist, 81-82, Sep. 9, 1989.

"Green entrepreneurs" in industrialized countries are beginning to market rainforest products that are produced by sustainable techniques and often represent more value per acre than products that involve forest destruction.