Six
years ago, Ecuador's president, Rafael Correa proposed a plan to
preserve four thousand square miles of the Amazon jungle; if $3.6
billion was donated to a trust fund, then Ecuador would not drill for
oil in the rain forest. At the time, this seemed like a
revolutionary plan that could pave the way for similar movements. It
was the hope of many that this act could be “used as a model for
other sensitive areas,” but that sliver of hope has died. At a
conference Thursday night, President Correa withdrew the offer after
the fund only received about $13 million. He agrees that the
drilling ruins the Ecuadorian homeland, but one-third of the
government's tax revenue comes from oil sales. From a purely
environmental standpoint, the simple answer would be to preserve the
rain forest, but for the good of the country, the economic costs must
also be noted. There is no easy answer in the struggle between
environmental preservation and economic progress, but personally I
find it upsetting that, in many cases like this, money is so
obviously chosen over the good of the environment.
This is sad. How much oil do they plan to drill in the Amazon now? And do all the donors get their money back? I think, from an economic stand point, the idea of "selling" the promise to be eco-friendly sounds like a smart way to bring money into your country; however, from an environmental standpoint, you should always care about the earth and do your best to keep it safe, no matter how much money you bring in. Alas, money runs the world. Is there a possibility that now that knowledge of the president's back-out has spread around the world, countries and environmentalists will be more willing to donate to the trust, and the plan can be put back into place? I hope this is the case! The Amazon is an important feature of the world and it would be nice to keep it natural and as untouched as possible.
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ReplyDeleteAbby I agree with you 100%. The rainforest relies on the whole ecosystem to survive. If a part of the rain forest were to be taken out, then the rainforest would be altered. Things would change, species would be forced to change habitats, and some species may even go extinct. It is sad that people have come to put money in front of the environment. They do not know it yet but Ecuador will suffer from long-term effects. I believe that Ecuador could have tried harder to save the rainforest. Rafael Correa, in my opinion, should have reached out to other countries and allies for aide. This would allow funds to help save the rainforest and save it from destruction for just some oil.
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