Beans taking over forests
Research in Argentina has shown that deforestation due to agricultural expansion of soybean is threatening the
Yungas ‘cloud forest’, and the
Chaco ecoregion, one of the largest forested
biomes (a major regional group of distinctive plant and animal communities) in South America.
In Argentina, while most recent expansion in soybean agriculture has relied on available agricultural land, there are aggressive targets to expand the agricultural area to increase soybean production for export.
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The cattle threat
Beef production in Argentina also poses a threat to natural habitats. Beef ‘feeding’, located on land that used to compete with agricultural crops, has been concentrated in the
Espinal Ecoregion (an area of thorny deciduous shrubland forest) threatening grasslands and forests.
Similar impacts have occurred with cattle ‘breeding’, which has expanded into the
Chaco ecoregion and is threatening forests. These processes are closely linked with an increasing demand for suitable land for soy cropping.
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Other environmental problems
Argentina also faces the issue of energy consumption and management and the inefficient use of non-renewable resources.
