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Timber is wood prepared for use in building and carpentry and it is a renewable resource. Being a renewable resource means that it can be used repeatedly and does not run out because it is naturally replaced. This group includes forests, wildlife, groundwater and fish. Most of the timber in the Amazon rainforest is known as mahogany. Mahogany is high value timber found in South America and Africa.

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Timber is a versatile renewable resource which is why it has such high demands globally. A few of the many uses for timber include:

Architecture

Firewood.

Construction and capertenry

Paper and pulp manufacturing

Furniture

Musical instruments

Toys and games

Oils → can be extracted from the timber

Fuel/ power generation

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The economic value of the resource on a global scale? How much is the resource worth?

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The economic value of the resource on a global scale? How much is the resource worth?

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The value of the timber industry reached a value of nearly $535.96 billion in 2020, having increased at a compound annual growth rate of 0.8% since 2015. The market is expected to grow from $535.96 billion in 2020 to $726.51 billion in 2025 at a rate of 6.3%.

The economic value of timber on a global scale varies depending on the quality of the wood however it provides extensive amounts of jobs as well as an increase in countries national income. Timber refers to the wood after being collected from labouring, therefore people are needed to turn this natural material into a useful resource. Within Australia alone from 2018 to 2019, the timber industry created $23.9 billion of sales and service income as well as provided 52,000 people with jobs. In the Amazon the timber industry provided 204,000 people with jobs which included 66,000 in direct jobs and 137,000 in indirect jobs.

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How is the resource accessed/mined/stored?

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How is the resource accessed/mined/stored?

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In the Amazon, timber is accessed by the logging of trees, which is often very destructive affecting surrounding wildlife and ecosystems by culling their homes. The large trees are cut down using heavy instruments, and dragged through the rainforest. The timber is accessed by those who own the area of trees, however the Areas that have been selectively logged are much more likely to be accessed and cleared by other cultivators than because of the road access created. After the wood has been sawed and dred, the timber is stored and dried, the timber is loaded on to shipments and sent to international markets and countries. Illegal logging accounts for 8-10% of timber production.

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Global

Timber is found in a wide variety of different locations around the world. However the countries with the largest forested area that can be used to make timber are; Russia, Canada, Brazil, China, and the United States. Timber is usually found in the natural biome Taigas, which are forests found in countries that are far north. Whereas temperate forests are located in the mid-latitudes such as forests eastern North America, eastern Asia, and Europe. Tropical forests are found closer to the equator, these include the AMAZON rainforest, and the Daintree rainforest.

National

Brazil is known for its high amount of timber production Figure 1.0 shows that the high value timber is found in the north of Brazil, and shows that the majority of ‘middle ground’ valued timber is the most abundant, found in most areas of brazil, however mainly the west.

Local

80% of the Amazon is forested, meaning that timber is abundant in most areas of the Amazon, making it easy to locally acquire.

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Global

The resource is commonly used globally in everyday life. In a study conducted in 2019, it was found that China was the biggest wood importer, with US $40 million worth of wood imported, second was the United States US $ 38 million and in third was Germany with 35 Million dollars worth of timber. Industrialised countries are beginning to use timber for energy. These countries include, USA, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Canada and Austria.  On the other side of the spectrum, third world countries also use timber such as India. In India timber is used for many reasons such as construction for poles, piles, furniture.

National

Timber is used in higher amounts within Brazil's more densely populated areas such as Rio de Jairo, São Paulo and Salvador. The reason for the high use of timber in these more urban areas is due to the higher population which equates to a higher demand in the natural resource of timber for its versatile uses.

Local

Majority of logging that occurs within the Amazon is exported overseas to countries such as the USA, China and Germany to use in a variety of big production lines. However, in 2018 research found that an estimated 6.7% of the timber harvested within the Amazon was being used by locals for purposes such as architecture and wood fires.

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Local:
Positive: Timber income provides the government with more options on what to spend the money on.

Negative: Local government areas own certain parts of the forest, which could cause ownership issues.

National:
Positive: People within Brazil are happy with the government as they are getting the income they require, therefore making it more likely to become re-elected.

Negative:

Due to illegal logging within the amazon there is an increased amount of corruption within the police force

National political opinion is based heavily off the income in which people receive, which therefore leads to more people voting in favour of the logging for timber.

In 2018 a Forest Code Supreme Court ruling encouraged wealthy ‘land-grabbers’ by granting billions in amnesty to forgive fines people that have been charged guilty for illegally logging.

Global:
Positive: Governments are able to trade timber with one another, fueling the economy and creating positive relationships between countries

Negative: Timber production and timber trade could potentially cause unrest between certain countries and tamper with their relationships.

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Local:

Positive:

Provides individuals with income

Better quality of life for individuals→ Brazil's HDI value for 2019 is 0.765, which puts it at 84 out of 189 countries and territories.

GDP per capita was $8,717.19 USD

Negative:

Increased violence in local areas as people defend the forest and risk their lives to confront loggers who violate Brazil’s environmental law. There are people who will even kill those who stand in the way of making a profit.

National

Positive:

Increases the national HDI and quality of life within the country.

Negative:

Rainforest mafias

National unrest

Literacy rate is low due to laborious jobs such as logging,  and an estimated only 18% of adults (25-64 year olds) in Brazil have attained tertiary education.

Global

Positive:

People from different countries benefit from the imports of timber as it can be used in various ways. This overall improves the quality of life for people globally

Negative:

People globally want to protect the amazon as it is our last chance at ‘Saving the earth’ however the Brazilian government and locals are too powerful

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Local:
Positive: Provides local people with income and jobs

Negative: There is a lot of tension between who gets the profit in small business, this sometimes leads to violence

National:
Positive: The logging industry in Brazil equated to US$ 53 000 million income which represents about 6.9 percent of its total GDP. Majority of the logging in Brazil comes from the Amazon rainforest.

Negative: Alot of money is spent on regeneration of the amazon forests to try and repair the environment. The nation spends hundreds of thousands of dollars every year to try and stop illegal harvesting of timber in protected areas of the first.It is estimated that to stop deforestation and harvesting of time altogether it would take approximately $100 million to $600 million per year.

Global:
Positive:

Brazil accounts for 2.4% of the global market for forest products.

Companies in Asia invested more than US$ 500 million in Brazil’s Amazon.

Negative:
- Due to the Amazon being the rainforest with the largest amount of biodiversity and the biggest positive contributor to climate change, many countries in the UN climate act agreement spend millions of their dollars trying to regenerate the forest and create technologies that can effectively mimic the benefits of the Amazon forest.

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Local

Positive:

When logging for timber occurs it allows for dead and diseased trees to be killed which prevent the spread of things such as fungi or bacteria which may damage other fauna.

Overtime trees become over-crowded and weak, therefore if a tree has overgrown and becomes old, removing the excess growth benefits the tree and allows for proper air circulation and exposure to sunlight which are essential for photosynthesis.

Negative:

The clearance of trees within the local areas of the Amazon destroy natural barriers for wind. Therefore areas become more exposed to harsh windy conditions which lead to a distribution of habitat.

The removal of trees within the amazon creates a loss of habitats for local animals and destroys plant species

Illegal harvesters cut trees regardless of whether they are protected by the government or not.

National
Positive:

The use of new technology allows people who are illegally logging to be tracked and allows the government to see visible changes to the forest.

Negative:

Many of the native Brazilian rainforest animals cannot survive due to their changed environment.

Loss of biodiversity in flora and fauna within Brazil

Soil degradation due to loss of nutrients

Global

Negative:

The Amazon, in particular the rainforest, is responsible for removing a large mass of carbon dioxide in earth's atmosphere due to the enhanced greenhouse effect. The removal of trees to create timber means that there are less trees to intake carbon dioxide and output oxygen causing the greenhouse effect to be even more pronounced, and allowing climate change to get worse on a global scale.

There are no legally binding treaties/pieces of law that stop illegal logging of trees from happening.

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Brazil’s political storm driving Amazon deforestation higher. (2018, July 9). Mongabay Environmental News. https://news.mongabay.com/2018/07/brazils-political-storm-driving-amazon-deforestation-higher/

BROWDER, J. O. (1986). LOGGING THE RAINFOREST: A POLITICAL ECONOMY OF TIMBER EXTRACTION AND UNEQUAL EXCHANGE IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON (TROPICAL FORESTRY, TRADE, MAHOGANY). Dissertations Available from ProQuest, 1–436.

Country profile Brazil. (n.d.). Retrieved August 16, 2021, from https://www.timbertradeportal.com/countries/brazil/

Forestry And Logging Market Report Opportunities And Strategies. (n.d.). Retrieved August 10, 2021, from https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/report/forestry-and-logging-products-market

Illegal Amazon logging: Inside the faltering fight. (2019, August 28). Environment. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/brazil-logging

Mahogany Timber Wood / Log. (n.d.). Indiamart.Com. Retrieved August 16, 2021, from https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/mahogany-timber-wood-log-21047587088.html

Politics is failing to protect the Amazon. It’s time for finance to step up instead. (n.d.). World Economic Forum. Retrieved August 10, 2021, from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/12/politics-are-failing-to-protect-the-amazon-its-time-to-use-finance/

Rainforest Mafias. (2019, September 17). Human Rights Watch. https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/09/17/rainforest-mafias/how-violence-and-impunity-fuel-deforestation-brazils-amazon

Timberbiz » How much money is an acre of timber worth? (n.d.). Retrieved August 16, 2021, from https://www.timberbiz.com.au/how-much-money-is-an-acre-of-timber-worth/

What is Timber and What is it Used For? (n.d.). Retrieved August 10, 2021, from https://www.thomasnet.com/articles/other/what-is-timber

Why is the Amazon rainforest important? (n.d.). Retrieved August 10, 2021, from https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/amazon/about_the_amazon/why_amazon_important/?