Amazon rainforest case study revision

Comprehensive revision resource covering the Amazon rainforest case study, perfect for teaching and reviewing the causes and impacts of deforestation with a named example.

What's included

• Detailed case study notes covering location, causes of deforestation, effects and responses
• Student summary task using a mind map activity
• Three exam-style questions (4, 6 and 9 marks) with mark schemes and guidance

Available as a downloadable PDF or as an editable Word document for subscribers.

About the Amazon rainforest case study

This resource examines the ongoing deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest. The case study explores how various factors from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture have contributed to deforestation, making it an excellent example for studying resource management and environmental challenges.

Revision and exam practice

Students can test their knowledge with carefully crafted exam-style questions that address key assessment objectives. The resource includes questions on causes of deforestation, economic impacts, and the effectiveness of conservation strategies.

Compare the positive and negative effects of deforestation to evaluate the complex relationship between economic development and environmental conservation in NEEs.

Looking for more resources on the Amazon rainforest?

Explore these additional resources to support your teaching of the Amazon rainforest topic:

GCSE resources

• Take 10: Amazon rainforest revision
• Who is responsible for deforestation?
• Sustainable management of rainforests

KS3 resources

• Introduction to the Amazon rainforest
• Understanding deforestation
• Peoples and uses of the rainforest

Or explore our complete collection of tropical rainforest teaching materials.

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Amazon rainforest case study notes

Case study: The Brazilian Amazon, South America

• The Amazon is the world’s largest area of tropical rainforest.
• It is 5 million km².
• Nine countries in South America have expanses of the Amazon in them but the largest area of rainforest is in Brazil.
• Two-thirds of the Amazon is in Brazil.
• The Amazon is also special in another way: it is home to the world’s largest river (by volume) – the Amazon River.

Deforestation and climate change

Tropical rainforests are important carbon sinks. Because trees are being cut down, however, they are now becoming carbon sources.

Deforestation releases the carbon stored within the trees back into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas.

Greenhouse gases are a major contributor to climate change.

Keyword glossary

• Deforestation: The removal of a forest or stand of trees, where the land is thereafter converted to a non-forest use.
• HEP: Hydro-electric power is the energy created by flowing water which is released from a dam built across a river.
• Greenhouse gases: A gas which contributes to the greenhouse effect by absorbing infrared radiation. Carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons are examples.

Causes of deforestation

Subsistence farming

• This is growing crops for yourself and your family.
• It is small scale.
• Usually the area is cleared by slash and burn, which as the name suggests means cutting down areas of forest and setting fires to clear the area quickly. The major problem is that these fires can escalate quickly and destroy large areas of forest.
• The land isn’t fertile for long, due to leaching by heavy rains, so farmers move on to new areas of forest.

Road building and population growth

• Brazil is an NEE and its economy is growing rapidly along with its
• The Trans Amazonian Highway was created to transport
• The government encouraged people living in city slums to relocate and offered a 6-month salary and 250 acres of forest to clear.

Mineral extraction

• The tropical rainforest is rich in minerals such as gold and iron ore.
• The trees are cleared so open cast mining can release these minerals for This land can never be returned to rainforest.
• Carajas mine in the Amazon is the largest iron ore mine in the world.

Commercial farming

• Farming on a large scale.
• Trees are cleared to create fields for farming soya and sugar. 30% of deforestation is due to this.

Hydro-electric power

• There are 150 dams in the Amazon.
• The fast-flowing Amazon river provides an ideal place to harness this energy.
• The river must be dammed and then areas upstream are flooded.

Logging

• Surprisingly, only 3% of deforestation is for the logs themselves.
• These can be sold to make furniture. However, 80% of logging for the wood is illegal.

Effects of deforestation

Positive physical effects

• HEP from the Amazon provides 70% of Latin America’s energy – this is clean, renewable energy that does not release CO².

Positive human effects

• The Belo Monte Dam is projected to cost $18.5 billion but will save Brazil $19 billion per year in electricity costs.
• Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of soya, beef and sugar – agriculture in the Amazon is very profitable for the economy.
• The Carajas mine (the largest iron ore mine in the world!) employs 20 000 people and has an annual revenue of $2.8 billion.
• Up to 40 tons of soil per hectare can be eroded after deforestation.

Negative human effects

• The Belo Monte Dam will have displaced up to 40 000 people from 40 different tribes.
• Settlers from urban areas ended up in massive debt having been attracted by the government to open farms in the Amazon.

Negative physical effects

• Deforestation in the Amazon has led to the extinction of 26 plant and animal species and a further 644 are at risk of extinction.
• Around 20% of the world’s oxygen is created in the Amazon – continued deforestation is contributing heavily to climate change.
• Deforestation leads to soil erosion.