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Forests
Some areas in Latin America engage in slash and burn farming, where the area's vegetation is cut down and burnt. This is to use the ash as a fertilizer. After 2 or 3 years, the soil fertilized with the ash can no longer be used to grow crops. So farmers have to move to another area, and burn another section. This theory is practiced much in the Amazon rainforest. There are great amounts of illegal ranching and burning trees to clear ways and make a profit in the region. Since it is easy to bribe the local police, the police turn a blind eye.



This not only causes deforestation but is a great reason that is causing global warming. The Amazon raifnorest is one of the "lungs" of our world and its destruction means an increase in carbon dioxide. This increases the temperature and ultimately damages the ecological system everywhere in the world even to the polar bears miles from the forest.

Air and Water Pollution
As industries and factories are placed the air becomes more polluted. Refineries and manufacturing businesses double the pollution released into the air. These same industries may pollute nearby water supplies by releasing chemicals. Construction sites, fuel and transportation contribute to every destruction in the ecosystem. On the other hand, urbanization and population growth, which is a great improvement in some aspects, have turned against the environment. The demand grew and more factories have to be set up which would in turn pollute the environment.



Soil Degradation
In Latin America, the soil is becoming worse and worse and erosion occurs and chemicals seep into the soil. This not only pollutes the land but also the water that may be under it. The major cause is that farmers are growing crops that are not native to the land. This pattern has been going on for a long time and has shown the consequences now. This kind of farms are on mountains causing landslides and erosion in a larger scale than plains. Soybean, the most popular crop, has left some areas eroded or even unable to be used.



Work Cited

 * "9.3 - Human Environment Interaction In Latin America." //Upload & Share PowerPoint presentations and documents// . N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2009..
 * "Environmental Problems in Latin America -." //Associated Content - associatedcontent.com//. Web. 02 Nov. 2009. .
 * "Green Kenya » Air Pollution in Kenya: Both Urban and Rural." //PeterNjenga.com | Home | Web Design, Graphic Design and Creative Writing Services//. Web. 02 Nov. 2009. .
 * "Land Degradation." //The Global Change Program at the University of Michigan//. Web. 02 Nov. 2009. .