Project work

Farmers in Brazil want to cut down the forest to make room for agriculture. Tourists want to keep the forest so that they can see the wildlife. In groups, prepare the arguments on each side, and then talk about the issue in class.

Many people in Britain think that tropical countries should preserve their rainforest. But those countries sometimes say: "You in Britain have cut down all your forest. You have no right to tell us what to do." It is true that 6,000 years ago, Britain was covered in forest, and now only a tiny area remains. How do you feel about this argument?

What can you do to prevent the destruction of the rainforest? Make a list of ideas, then discuss and decide which are the most useful.

Here is a short list of environmental or "green" issues. Which do you think is the most important? Explain your choice to the class.

• climate change - global warming, or "the greenhouse effect"

• acid rain

• species in danger of extinction (e.g. the rhino, the elephant, the tiger)

• destruction of the rainforest

• destruction of the countryside

• pesticides and other pollution in food

It is sad when an animal or plant species becomes extinct. But we don't feel bad about the dinosaurs and they disappeared millions of years ago. Does it really matter if we lose a few more species?

Writing for work and pleasure

Design a T-shirt with a message about the rainforest or about another green issue. Think of a beautiful natural place that you know. Write a description, including the plants and animals that live there.

Wild life

According to the experts, between 1990 and 2000 10% of the estimated 30 million species of plants and animals were lost forever. By 2030 another 20% are likely to be lost. The tiger is a good example of endangered species. Subspecies: There are five surviving subspecies: Bengal, Indo-Chinese, Siberian, South China and Sumatran.

Estimated Population: In 1994 there were estimated to be fewer than 3,750 Bengal tigers in the wild. Indo-China tigers numbered fewer than 1,750 in 1993, and at this time there were between 30 and 80 South China tigers. There were fewer than 600 Sumatran tigers in 1992 and approximately 430 Siberian tigers in 1990 (IUCN 1996). Range: Each tiger subspecies has a different range. The Bengal tiger lives in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan. The Indo-Chinese tiger inhabits Kampuchea, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam. The South China tiger lives in southern China. The Siberian tiger lives in North Korea, Manchuria and Russia, and the Sumatran tiger inhabits Sumatra, Indonesia. Habitat Type: Tigers occupy various types of habitat including rain forests, evergreen forests, mangrove swamps, grasslands, savannas and rocky country. Their only requirements are that their habitats have sufficient water, prey and cover. Primary Threats: Poaching still is rampant, despite efforts to stop it; tiger parts are considered valuable throughout Asia for their believed medicinal benefits. Tiger prey is diminishing due to human predation on these animals. Habitat destruction resulting from logging and agricultural operations is another threat to the survival of tigers. Habitat loss also reduces the amount of prey available to tigers and simultaneously fragments tiger populations.

Background: Few animals are better known or more admired than the tiger. But these graceful and powerful hunters are also critically endangered. A handful of wild tigers still survive in the mangrove swamps of northeast India, jungles of Indonesian Sumatra, forests of Siberia, and a few other areas. But even these last strongholds are under extreme pressure.

Of the eight original tiger subspecies, only five remain; the other three were wiped out in the last half century by over-hunting and habitat loss. The estimated 5,000 remaining wild tigers are under tremendous pressure due to poaching, which supplies an illegal trade in body parts for traditional Chinese medicines. Simultaneously, tigers continue to lose habitat to human encroachment, resulting in the consumption of land, firewood, timber, wild game, and other resources, and pollution in the water and air. With protection, wild tiger populations can recover rapidly, but first there must be immediate conservation action by countries with tiger populations, countries consuming products with tiger parts, and by the international community. Critical tiger habitat must be protected, and the trade in tiger parts must be swiftly stopped.