Amazon RF Cause and Effect

Cause: Trees in the Amazon are cut down to make space for cattle ranches.
What is the most likely effect?

• More animals move into the forest.

• There is less oxygen produced.

• The forest grows back instantly.

• The weather becomes cooler.

Cause: The Amazon rainforest receives heavy rainfall and has warm temperatures year-round.
What is the most likely effect?

• Few plants are able to grow.

• The forest floods and disappears.

• The rainforest supports a wide variety of plants and animals.

• People cannot live anywhere near it.

Cause: Indigenous groups protect certain parts of the Amazon.
What is the most likely effect?

• Those areas keep more biodiversity (different plants and animals).

• All logging stops everywhere in South America.

• The rainforest doubles in size.

• Rainfall decreases in those areas.

Cause: Many Amazon rainforest plants are studied by scientists for possible medical uses.
What is the most likely effect?

• Scientists avoid testing Amazon plants because they are too dangerous.

• New medicines could be discovered to fight diseases.

• The rainforest becomes less diverse.

• Indigenous groups stop using traditional plant remedies.

Effect: Indigenous people in the Amazon Rainforest are losing parts of their traditional lands.
What is the most likely cause?

• The rainforest is naturally shrinking each year.

• Indigenous groups are moving into large cities by choice.

• Indigenous groups are planting too many crops.

• Illegal logging and mining take over forest areas.

Cause: People around the world use foods and products that come from the Amazon, such as Brazil nuts, cacao (for chocolate), and rubber.

• Global trade is influenced by what grows in the rainforest.

• The Amazon becomes less valuable to humans.

• Farmers stop growing crops in the rainforest.

• These products are only used by local indigenous groups.

The Amazon contains one of the highest levels of biodiversity on Earth.
What is the most likely effect?

• The forest produces fewer resources for humans.

• The Amazon has no connection to the global ecosystem.

• Plants and animals compete less for survival.

• Many unique species live only in the Amazon.

Cause: Illegal gold mining in the Amazon often uses toxic mercury.
What is the most likely effect?

• The soil becomes richer and supports more crops.

• Wildlife populations grow larger.

• Mercury disappears quickly and causes no problems.

• Rivers and fish become polluted, harming people who rely on them.

Effect: The Amazon helps regulate rainfall across South America.
What is the most likely cause?

• The forest pumps water or moisture into the air.

• It has very few trees, so the land stays dry.

• The Amazon River flows backward into the ocean.

• Farmers water the forest every year.

Cause: Scientists cut down too much rainforest when searching for resources.
What is the most likely effect?

• The biodiversity (variety of life) becomes weaker, and some species may go extinct.

• The rainforest instantly regrows to the same size.

• Indigenous knowledge of plants becomes stronger.

• New animal species move into the destroyed areas.