We learnt that the Congo basin is under threat from a range of sources-
LOGGING BY TNCs
This video summarises the reasons the Congo basin is important and threats to the delicate biome, including logging, bush meat and agriculture.
It also shows some ways the locals are trying to sustain the forest.
Certain levels of LOGGING are permitted, however some people (including large TNCs) are illegally logging the Congo Basin to exploit it for timber and other goods
BUSHMEAT TRADE-
Bush meat is the term for live forest animals, obviously local people have to kill some animals for meat (protein source) however some animals, including endangered gorillas and apes are being killed and illegally transported to countries like the UK, where they are being sold on the black market, especially in large cities like London. This threatens the BIOSPHERE as it disrupts the delicate balance by interrupting the food web, where over hunting of one animal has knock on effects on the whole ecosystem.
MINING-
Increasingly the Congo Basin, especially in the Congo DR, is being degraded in order to extract the mineral Coltan.
This is an increasingly important mineral especially in the world of portable electronic devices. Coltan is the component in mobile technology that allows the data to be stored in the device, without it, modern habits are under threat.
These threats we learnt are DIRECT threats (physically going in and degrading the biosphere). We also learnt that everyday activities that increase the ENHANCED GREENHOUSE EFFECT, Such as driving cars and wasting stuff that then goes to landfill, releasing methane, INDIRECTLY DEGRADE the biosphere as these activities can lead to climate change which in turns can alter pressure patterns across the globe, which in turn alters rainfall and temperature patterns, which over time may alter biomes, turning tropical rainforest to savanna and savanna to desert, impacting on the vegetation and animal life.
This clip shows the way locals are trying to protect the Congo Basin
We then looked at how we can manage the BIOSPHERE to protect it from these threats-
BIOSPHERE RESERVES- areas that are patrolled and protected from destruction, sometimes anti- poaching teams help to stop the killing of animals and to keep people out if they are degrading the area.
BUFFER ZONES- these have been used in the Congo Basin, and are areas where locals can use the forests for what they need as they have always done, whilst inside the BUFFER ZONE the land is kept as natural as possible
ZONING- this is done in many areas that are also NATIONAL PARKS (areas protected by Law), it involves dividing an important area into different zones, so most needs are met, but some areas are kept as natural as possible, to preserve the BIOSPHERE. This is done in the Congo Basin- some areas are open to tourisms and some areas the natural life is left alone and undisturbed.
ECOTOURISM- On the edge of the Congo Basin, in the Virunga's they have created a NATIONAL PARK to protect the forest and the mountain gorillas who inhabit it. In addition they have trained local people to look after the gorillas and to guide tourists around the park and on treks to visit the gorillas at certain locations. This has protected the gorillas as they no longer need to kill the gorillas to make money, they can instead make money from visiting tourists who pay $400 to enter the park and have a guided tour. This keeps the forest protected as the expense limits visitor numbers and certain areas are still no go so they are kept as natural as possible.
We also looked at how the BIOSPHERE is managed GLOBALLY by agreements such as CITES (The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fuana and Flora)
Even the Prince cares about this!!
We learnt that CITES is adhered to by over 130 nations, it controls the trade in endangered species and their parts (dead or alive), thus it seems preventing people moving endangered goods around the world, stopping the trade. It set up a permit system that must be obtained if you plan to trade in any species on CITES list (endangered species).
It reportedly worked on elephants as it reduces the demand for Ivory, thus people stopped killing
elephants as they were no longer able to make money.
See their website for more information
We understood that these GLOBAL agreements are necessary and work for some species, however they are difficult to enforce across all borders and thus illegal trade in endangered species does still happen.
Sustainable management of the BIOSPHERE was our final topic of the unit. We looked at how they are managing an area of rainforest in Talamanca, Costa Rica sustainably.
We learnt how they used ECOTOURISM and sustainable logging to help protect the forest in the area of the country called Talamanca.
They only take dead trees not live ones, and used them to be a tourist lodge to educate tourists about the importance of sustainable forest management. They remove the trees from the forest by buffalo instead of creating a road in and out, which would increase amount of deforestation.
Here are the unit review questions for you to have a go at-
Explain how local factors affect biomes (4)
Explain how precipitation and temperature affect the distribution of global biomes (4)
Describe the value of a named biome you have studied (4)
Explain how humans can impact (degrade) biomes (4)
Explain how the biosphere can act as out life support system (4)
Describe one way the biosphere can be managed (2)
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