There is, perhaps, no scene that conjures the word "primordial" more than that of a shadowy, steamy jungle. There are mysteries hidden everywhere, otherworldly screams, camouflaged predators, noxious plants, stinging bugs, mold, decay and boggy impassable ground. It is, in the minds of many, the very thing civilization was invented to fend off.
Most of that sentiment comes from lack of familiarity with jungles, which are also called tropical rain forests. To know a jungle, it turns out, is to love it. And there's the rub: Jungles are not easy to know. They are incredibly complex places, with most of their life in the leafy, limb-filled spaces above the ground. Humans did not evolve in a place like this, though native people have shown that humans can adapt to it and live well — if they learn the ways of the jungle.
Other arguments have also been used to protect the jungles. Their ability to absorb carbon dioxide, for instance, helps to fight the greenhouse effect and global warming. There is also the hidden pharmaceutical and biodiversity value of jungles. Nature has spent millions of years making a dizzying array of jungle organisms, which produce an innumerable number of complex bioactive compounds that could do wonders for human health — if only we had time to discover and study them.
Finally, there is inherent value in primordial jungle for itself. The fantastic array of life found in jungles, however unwelcome to most humans, offers something no human creation can ever match — the most complex show of interacting life on the planet. To many, that is not only intellectually stimulating and spiritually refreshing, but far too rich a treasure and too long in the making to be sacrificed for a few more cords of timber.
Hope for Jungles
Things are not entirely bleak for the jungles, however. In the early 1990s, the world finally came together to stop the destruction. The need for timber harvesters to start using sustainable practices was made crystal clear by huge boycotts by consumers of tropical woods. By the end of the decade, more than 36 million acres of jungle had been certified sustainable by the international Forest Stewardship Council. What's more, certified timber sells for more.
Other arguments have also been used to protect the jungles. Their ability to absorb carbon dioxide, for instance, helps to fight the greenhouse effect and global warming. There is also the hidden pharmaceutical and biodiversity value of jungles. Nature has spent millions of years making a dizzying array of jungle organisms, which produce an innumerable number of complex bioactive compounds that could do wonders for human health — if only we had time to discover and study them.
Finally, there is inherent value in primordial jungle for itself. The fantastic array of life found in jungles, however unwelcome to most humans, offers something no human creation can ever match — the most complex show of interacting life on the planet. To many, that is not only intellectually stimulating and spiritually refreshing, but far too rich a treasure and too long in the making to be sacrificed for a few more cords of timber.
A COURTESY OF GOOGLE.COM
