After years of inattention, the whole world has just awaken to
what is happening in the Amazon. “Save the rain forest” is the
cry of conservationists, politicians, and rock stars. The
movement has already sparked a confrontation between rich
industrials nations, which are new converts to the
environmental cause, and the poorer nations of the Third World
which consider outside interference as an assault on their
sovereignty. Scientists think that destruction of the Amazon
could lead to climatic chaos. Because of the huge volume of
clouds it generates, the Amazon system plays a major role in the
way the sun’s heat is distributed around the globe. Any
disturbance of this process could produce unpredictable effects.
As an American Senator has just said: “The devastation is
unbelievable. It’s one of the great tragedies of all history”.
(Adapted from Playing with Fire, by Eugene Linden)