History of Amazonia and Amazonian Deforestation

chapter 2 History of Amazonia and Amazonian Deforestation

The use of tropical forests has implications beyond the borders that contain them.1 ∵

In order to understand Amazonia today, it is important to investigate how humans have occupied it and affected their natural environment through time. Chapter 2 therefore explains how the use of natural resources and environmental degradation has shaped the region. The chapter is divided into five sections that relate to historical periods: (i) occupation by indigenous groups in pre-Columbian times; (ii) European conquest and colonization; (iii) inde- pendence; (iv) military dictatorships; and (v) reestablished democracies. This historical study is by no means exhaustive. It provides a framework to understand how the Amazon region was settled, and how political periods shaped it. This analysis sets the stage for Chapter 3, which provides an overview of the challenges and economic drivers currently faced by Amazonia. Environmental historians often refer to three issues of particular interest that influence how a society relates to its environment: territories, commodi- ties and knowledge.2 This approach is particularly relevant in the Amazon region. The development of Amazonia is the result of three factors combined: (i) the geographic and ecological diversity that influences human occupation processes and methods; (ii) the continued human presence in the region for 12,000 years, as well as the interruptions and lack of continuity of occupation of territory; and (iii) the diversity of colonization processes commenced by European countries in the 16th century, continued by the new independent national states in the 19th century.3 More recently, the region has been affected

1 Philip E. Wilson, Jr., Barking Up The Right Tree: Proposals for Enhancing the Effectiveness of the International Tropical Timber Agreement, 10 Temp. Int’l & Comp. L.J.at 232–233 (1996). 2 Gavin O’Toole, Environmental Politics in Latin America and the Caribbean, Introduction, 11–12 (2014). 3 unep, acto and ciup, Geo Amazonia: Environmental Outlook in Amazonia 42 (2009).

36 chapter 2 by an increase in scientific knowledge, which has shaped laws and policies, and advanced environmental protection.

2.1 Occupation before Colonization

The large-scale degradation of tropical rainforests has become one of the icon- ic images of the impacts of the 21st century on the environment, and may be one of our century’s most profound legacies.4 Despite the current magnitude of this degradation, deforestation started long before that. Indeed, it dates back to ancient times. Human society was transforming the environment of the Americas long before European civilizations arrived.5 Evidence of community occupation within Amazon countries varies. The first known settlements date to 11,200 years ago at the Caverna da Pedra Pintada, in Brazil.6 Due to its geographical location, present-day Colombia was a corridor for the movement of populations between Mesoamerica, the Caribbean, the Andes and the Amazon. Indigenous communities have inhab- ited what is now Colombia since 12,000 years ago.7 Complex prehistoric indigenous tribes populated what is now Brazilian and Venezuelan territory about 10,000 years ago, mostly in the Amazon region.8 The earliest evidences of human presence in the Peruvian territory have been dated to approximately 11,000 years ago. Bolivia and Suriname show signs of occupation by indigenous communities for over 3,000 years.9 Peru was home to the Norte Chico civilization,10 which flourished between 4,000 and 6,000 years ago. Guyana, which then also encompassed the territories of French Guyana and Dutch Guyana (Suriname), was populated by two indigenous groups, the Arawak along the coast and the Carib in the interior.

4 Richard A Betts et al., The future of the Amazon: new perspectives from climate, ecosystem and social sciences, 363 Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B 1729 (2008). 5 unep, acto and ciup, supra note 3, at 42. 6 A.C. Roosevelt et al., Paleoindian Cave Dwellers in the Amazon: The Peopling of the Americas, 272 Science, 373 (1996), available at http://www.sciencemag.org/content/272/5260/373 .short. 7 For example, the Muisca, Quimbaya, Tairona. 8 Large groups Tupis, Guaranis, Gês, and Arawaks. Most important subdivisions are Tupiniquins and Tupinambás. 9 For example, the Aymara (2000 years), and the Tiwanaku (since 1500 bc). 10 Also called Caral or Caral-Supe civilization. For more on the Norte Chico civilization, see Ruth Shady Solis et al., Dating Caral, a Preceraminc Site in the Supe Valley on the Central Coast of Pery, 292 Science 723–726 (Apr. 27, 2001); and Jonathan Haas et al., Dating the Late Archaic occupation of the Norte Chico region in Peru, 432 Nature, 1020–1023 (Dec. 23, 2004).