19 Perspectives on the Amazon Rain Forest
I visited the Amazon basin three times so far. The most memorable time was the first time in 1966 when I took my one month Peace Corps vacation and traveled solo from Mato Grosso over to the cities of Porto Velho, Rio Branco de Acre, Manaus, and Belem do Para. Part of the trip, I spent glued to the airplane windows snapping photos. The stops were major learning experiences.
Route of my tour 1966. Mapa do Brasil by thejourney1972 (South America addicted) license under CC BY 2.0 1975
Porto Velho was a rubber collecting depot located at the base of the rapids (Cachoeira de Teotonio) on the Rio Madeira. Rubber harvested from the upper reaches of Rhondonia and eastern Bolivia was brought by barge to the top of the rapids where it was downloaded on to the Madeira Mamore Railroad to bypass the 40 kilometer rough stretch of River. Porto Velho at the base of the rapids was a break-in-bulk point for transportation and the natural place to locate the State capitol of Rhondonia.
In 1966, Porto Velho was a rough town, dirt streets, a number of bars and and men with pistols on their hips. The busiest part of town was where the train unloaded large balls of rubber to be transferred onto barges that continued the journey down river to Belem near the mouth of Amazon River .
It was in Porto Velho where I met the eccentric entrepreneurial old Texan. That encounter is described in another chapter.
As a major rubber producing center in 1900, Porto Velho in 1966 had been reduced to a provincial outpost where other forest products including small amounts of rubber was sold. That rubber was produced at the household level where forest families collected latex from a couple of rubber trees. Once a month they would bring one or two 40 pound rubber balls to the nearest trading post to exchange for household items.
Rubber tapping involves cutting angled slits in the bark of a rubber tree (hevea brasiliensis) so that the sap would slowly ooze into a collection bucket.
Floating trading post by Rick Bein 1966.
Old Rubber tree (hevia brasilensis) located at the Amazon Museum. This tree has survived many tappings. Each slit represents one tapping. Photo by Rick Bein 1966,
After a few days the bucket is emptied in to a large pot. When there is enough sap, it is boiled slowly until a sticky mass of latex remains. From there the latex is rolled onto a two inch diameter wooden pole where it cools into a ball. More latex is added until it reaches a manageable two foot wide by three foot long ball. Then the forty pound rubber ball is carried out of the forest on the pole to where it will be sold at a trading post.
These balls of rubber were produced at the household level in the State of Rondonia and eastern Bolivia and brought to a floating trading post along the river where they were exchanged for salt and kitchen items. The rubber was collected by small businessmen who shipped it down stream to resell it to larger companies. This rubber was off loaded above the Teotonio Rapids and brought by train to Porto Velho, Rondonia, where it was reloaded onto a barge to continue the the trip to Belem near the mouth of the Amazon River. The workers posed on top of these rubber balls long enough for me to take this picture in 1966.
This artisan rubber collection differs greatly from the mass production that occurred around 1900. At that time large scale rubber collection dominated the whole region. This rubber boom was stimulated by the demand for automobile tires. Ecologically, this boom self-destructed when the natural predators of the rubber grew along with the expanded production, creating an expensive and weakening rubber crop. Henry Ford’s “Fordlandia” rubber plantation failed miserably. The crowning blow to the industry was the successful cultivation of rubber trees in other tropical regions where there were no natural predators. Almost over night the booming multi-million dollar industry collapsed in 1904.
When I traveled on to Manaus, I could see the remains of the once vast rubber landscape. Manaus was once the center of world rubber production, a booming town flowing with activity. The Manaus Opera House hosted Broadway productions that travel by passenger ship from New York and up the Amazon River to Manaus. When I toured the Opera House in 1966 it was in major disrepair, rafters were falling from the ceiling, windows broken, artifacts stolen and vandalized. Cobwebs dominated the aisles and dust lay everywhere. I wondered if it was due for demolition.
Amazon Theater, Inaugurated in 1896. Photo owned by Histórico Nacional pelo IPHAN from 1966. Photo by Rafael Zart creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0 September 20 2019
I was intrigued with the floating city (Cidade Flotuante), a massive slum extending from the port out into the River, moored only by ropes and connect by planks leading from floating structure to structure. Shanty homes housed large families next to little shops. Each building was tied to another one closer to the land. Fortunately, the annual flood of the Amazon River did not have a major effect on the community because Manaus is located on the Rio Negro branch of the river, which has less of an increase in flow. However, the flood of the main Amazon extends up the Rio Negro, but causes minor turbulence so the Cidade Flotuante merely rises up and down each year. The seasonal difference in water level is about 10 meters. The main shipping port has a major ramp that hinges up and down in different seasons to accommodate vehicles moving on and off ocean going ships .
Cidade Flutuante (Floating) occupied part of the harbor at the Port of Manaus. Shanties tied to logs provided homes for impoverished squatters. Photo by Rick Bein 1966.
Encontro das Aguas where the Rio Negro mixes with the Rio Solimois to form the main Amazon. The dark organic rich Rio Negro water is gradually integrated with highly sediment-ed Rio Solimois. Photo buy Rick Bein 1993.
The magnitude of the Amazon River exceeds all other rivers, both in length (4,388 miles, debatable with the Nile River) and in water volume. At Manaus, where the two branches come together, it is estimate to be ten mile across during the flood season. Moving at 6 miles per hour the river flushes every thing it can reach. Changing course each year, ripping out new channels and carrying floating islands of vegetation. At the Atlantic ocean the gush of the brown sediment filled water extends one hundred miles. Historically, Spanish sailors restored their ship’s drinking water supplies completely out of sight of the land.
Satellite view of the mouth of the Amazon shows the silt extending out into the Atlantic ocean. Google Earth.
Deforestation of the Amazon basin posses a major threat to the world. This vast ancient forest produces a major part of the earth’s oxygen through the natural photosynthetic process. Also the immense biodiversity that exists, has hardly been explored, and who knows what benefits that can come from future discoveries. This significance of these planetary benefits are hardly recognized by the Brazilian Government who realizes very little monetary benefit from this massive 2.5 million square miles of real estate and wants to convert it to lucrative agriculture.
It is my opinion that the rest of the world should come to an agreement with Brazil, not to deforest, but receive compensation for the loss of this hypothetical revenue. The rest of the world’s countries could contribute billions of dollars to this cause.
The process of clearing the rainforest starts as a form of slash and burn agriculture (also called shifting cultivation) where small farmers cut and burn the forest and then plant crops in the fertile ashes. Traditionally, the forest would be allowed to regrow for up to ten years before clearing again.
After three years, the ashes disperse, the soil wears out and pests become a problem. Then farmer abandons the farm and allows the forest to reclaim the area. He moves on to clear another piece of land. Photo by Rick Bein 1972.
A major pest is the leaf cutter ant (formiga sauva) which normally finds natural clearings in the forest and struggles to keep the clearing open by cutting leaves to feed to their underground larva. Eventually the forest wins out and the ants seek another tree fall area to colonize. But, when a farm clearing appears, the ants invade and devour the crops. Photo by Rick Bein 1972.
While flying over the forest in a commercial airline in 1966, I snapped this photo. Several stages of the shifting cultivation are evident. The dark burned area is being prepared for planting. The land, center left and top right, have been recently abandoned. The pristine forest is located in the bottom right. In the top right is second growth forest having been abandoned years ago. It takes 200 years for the second growth forest to attain the biodiversity of the pristine forest.
Cattle ranchers intercede the shifting cultivation by planting invasive African grasses on the abandoned farm land. Since the African grasses have no natural predators they out compete the native grasses. Vigorous African grasses, (jaragua, colonial and pangola) have taken over. Also, periodic burning kills any new tree growth while encouraging the germination of the grass seeds. Vast areas are being taken over and permanently converted to pasture with no hope of any forest returning. More recent practice, eliminates the the farm cycle altogether and plant the grasses immediately after the burn. An expansive charcoal business aids in the dispersal of any partially burned wood.
Tropical cattle from India survive quite well in the tropics of South America and the spreading African grasses feed them well. Blowing the “berrante” signals the cattle that salt is available (white bag behind saddle). Photos by Rick Bein 1971.
Charcoal production is another practice that encourages forest clearing as the remaining wood is chard in kilns such as this. Photo by Rick Bein 1971.
Mining for precious metals found in the alluvial sand and gravels deposits along waterways is also destructive to the environment as toxins pollute the land and water, leaving large areas of waste land.
Garimpeiros are using sieves to separate diamonds from the river gravels. Mining is destructive to river banks and pollutes the water. Small scale mining occurs throughout the Amazon basin. Photos by Rick Bein 1965.
Once a road is created the rainforest is now open for anyone to begin clearing. Small farmers can easily settle and begin there clearings and as the population builds up shops now appear to provide other services. Major lumbering can efficiently harvest massive hardwood to logs to be trucked away. A cross Amazon road is in the planning by the current Brazilian government which will sign the death null for a huge spans of pristine rainforest. This has become very controversial at this time in 2022.
Roads open the environment to deforestation and development. Once established there is no stopping the deforestation. photo by Rick Bein 1966.
Another scenario would be to develop tourism as another source of income. Brazil considers this a good benefit that could coexist with the deforestation. Whatever the case tourism has taken off.
When I returned to Manaus in 1986 and in 2003, major changes had taken place. The Manaus Theater was being restored and was beautifully decorated. There was no evidence of cobwebs on the inside. Murals were being redone and with its history, the building is considered a museum. This has become a major tourist stop.
Now, the Cidade Flutuante was gone, for me a fascinating cultural attraction, but was seen as an ugly favella that would be viewed unfavorably by tourists. The squatters had been forced to find unwanted scraps of land to build their shanties, like on the edge of ravines leading to the rivers.