Green Options » rubber trees

Rubber Tree Growing in S. E. Asia Expanding, Along with Risks

Michael Ricciardi — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 22:37:54 +0000

Unrestricted expansion of rubber tree plantations in South East Asia could lead to “devastating environmental effects”, according to authors Ziegler, Fox and Xu writing in a May, 2009 perspective article in Science.

Throughout the “montane” (foot hill and low mountainous) mainland of South East Asia (inclusive of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and China), rubber plantations are expanding. So far, an estimated half million hectares have been planted, and by 2050, that land mass area could triple. This expansion will come at a cost to broad leaf, evergreen forests and “swidden” areas (with vegetation from older slash and burn efforts).

The High Price of Rubber & the Devastation of Southeast Asia

Lisa Wojnovich — Tue, 26 May 2009 12:00:02 +0000

Slash-and-burn agriculture may be bad for the environment, but in southeast Asia, the cure may be worse than the disease. Endorsed by multiple governments, at both the local and national levels, as well as numerous business interests, everyone from individual farmers to massive corporations has been replacing the traditional slash-and-burn, more technically known as swidden, method of farming with rubber plantations managed with European techniques. In the last 20 years, over 1.2 million acres of land in China, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar have been cleared and replanted with nothing but rubber trees. By 2050, this number is expected to double — possibly even triple.

Natural Contraception, Brazilian-Style

Shirley Siluk Gregory — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 19:20:51 +0000

Brazil’s health ministry has announced a plan aimed at reducing its dependence on imported goods, fighting AIDS, providing contraception and … preserving the Amazon rainforest. The highlight of the plan? Natex, a condom to be made from latex from Brazil’s rubber trees.