PEOPLE'S IMPACT

People's Impact on the Ecosystem

The destruction of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest is one of the most alarming conservation problems in the world largely because tropical moist forests are victims of devastating human impact (Prado et al., 2005)


Since the occupation of Brazil by Europeans in the 1500’s, there has been mass deforestation occurring in the Atlantic Forest. The original area covering the forest was 1,300,000 km² (Prado et al., 2005). 

(Galindo-Leal et al., 2003)

Clearing of the forest can primarily be attributed to the need for timber, firewood, charcoal, agriculture, cattle ranching, and construction of cities. 

The 1900s brought about rapid industrialization and population growth which further exacerbated the waning state of the forest. Cities and railways were erected, bleeding into forest territory at an uncontrolled rate. 

(Galindo-Leal et al., 2003) 

Occupation, without appropriate urban and environmental planning, caused a reduction of the forest to 98,800 km² or 7.6% of the original forest (Prado et al., 2005). 

Today, 120 million Brazilians live in more than 3,000 cities of the Atlantic Forest’s cleared lands (Prado et al., 2005). 

Species extinction and endangerment is rampant in the Atlantic Forest. Although it is a biodiversity hotspot, the forest is losing much of its endemic species due to continued deforestation and overall mistreatment of the land. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) published in its Global Red List of Endangered Species that more than 110 species living in the Atlantic Forest are threatened, 29 of which are endangered critically.  

(Galindo-Leal et al., 2003)

     Human pollution, like the oil crisis of the 1970s in which Alcohol was used to substitute fuel, have had a strong impact on the state of the forest (Galindo-Leal et al., 2003). 

      Logging, agriculture, and cattle ranches have taken a huge toll on the Atlantic Forest. Brazil has recently embarked on the journey to improve conditions in its forests. People on a grassroots scale and on a national scale have advocated for this effort. Regardless, the effort to restore and preserve biodiversity in the Atlantic Forest is sufficiently underfunded (Bulter, 2008).  

      In November 2009, Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva signed a decree to protect and restore the Atlantic Forest to 20% of its original cover. Separately, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) created a program to plant a billion native trees in the region. Even with all the initiative taken by politicians and environmentalists, the environment remains in a state of improving disrepair. This is because years of human damage have taken their toll on the ecosystem. It will take a lot of time before the forest can return to a healthier condition (Bulter, 2009). 

(Butler, 2009) 

(Butler, 2008) 

How do people benefit from the Atlantic Forest?

The Brazilian Atlantic Forest provides 50% of the freshwater needed by the Brazilian population that lives in its coastal areas.

Like many forests, the Atlantic Forest has also helped keep increasing carbon emission levels down. Its trees successfully take in pollutants like CO₂ and emit Oxygen that is safe for human breathing.

The Forest also provides people with a place to live, for timber for building, hardwood for burning for energy/warmth, and for farmland for either cattle or for monoculture plantations such as sugarcane and coffee (Zachos et al., 2011). 

What can be done to maintain balance between people and the Atlantic Forest?

Although humans need the resources that the Atlantic Forest provides to live, such practices can be carried out sustainably.

Deforestation can also be practiced more sustainably. For example, companies can practice shelterwood cutting. This allows for some original, elderly trees to remain so that they may provide shade for new saplings to grow (Augenfeld et al., 2008). 


To decrease the negative impacts of agriculture, farmers can practice crop rotation and intercropping. Such practices will minimize famine, disease and increase nutrients in the soil, producing a better crop yield. (Fonseca et al., 2009). 



Studies show that animals in the forest are among those that can survive in both open and closed ecosystems. However, those primarily found in the Atlantic Forest survive best in closed ecosystems (without human interference in their landscape). Such species can be satisfied by ecologically-tree monocultures that simulate the Forest’s original composition. One example of this is shade coffee, which is grown without disturbing the closed canopy found in tropical forests.

How can we improve/maintain positive impacts on the Atlantic Forest?

Improvements can be made to the Atlantic Forest in a number of ways. The practice of healthy agricultural methods is a good place to start. Continuing to plant trees that are a part of the forest’s original canopy is also a productive thing to do. Enforcing environmental standards on pollution levels can protect the current state of the forest from worsening. Furthermore, protecting the endemic, endangered, and threatened species in the Atlantic Forest from exploitation and extinction can really help.