Amazon

0: XixuaúXiparina Reserve

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This nature reserve is 450,000 acres. It is considered to be under total protection and runs research, tourism, and sustainable development projects. The reserve was made by incorporating the land of local indigenous inhabitants, who were made members of an association that now owns the land cooperatively. Many local inhabitants now serve as guides and guards on the reserve.

Amazonia Association: Xixaú-Xiparina Reserve

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1: Amazon Rainforest

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The international community recognizes this region as the Amazon Rainforest. This region covers approximately 5 percent of the Earth's surface and is one of the world’s most remarkable ecosystems. The rainforest has a wealth of biodiversity, home to more than 30,000 plant species, nearly 2,000 fish species, 60 reptile species, 35 mammal families, and approximately 1,800 bird species. It is also home to approximately 30 million people, spans eight countries (in addition to French Guiana), and holds a wealth of mineral and fossil fuel reserves.

BBC's Q&A about the Amazon Paradox

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2: Amazon River

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The Amazon River is the longest, deepest, and widest river in the world, spanning a distance of over four thousand miles. It reaches depths of up to three hundred feet and streches thirty-five miles wide at some points. The river flows west to east, spilling over six million cubic feet of water into the Atlantic Ocean every second. This is enough water to fill seventy Olympic-size swimming pools every second. The Amazon River pours more water into the ocean than the earth's next nine largest rivers combined.

Mongabay.com: Amazon River

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9: Legal Amazonia: Administrative region of Brazil

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In 1953, the Brazilian government established a region called Legal Amazonia. The government constructed highways and created tax policies to encourage developers to come to this region. Legal Amazonia encompasses an area of two million square miles—about 60 percent of Brazil—and covers seven Brazilian states.

Legal Amazonia Conservation Plan

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10: The Amazon Rainforest Biome: Ecological region within the Amazon Basin

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The World Wildlife Fund (a large environmental organization) defines this region as the Amazon Rainforest Biome. A biome is a community of plant and animal species within a major ecological area that has a particular climate. The climate in this region is warm and rainy all year long. The region stretches across approximately 2.1 million square miles, containing about one-third of the planet's remaining rainforest.

NASA Earth Observatory: Rainforest Biome

Mongabay.com: Rainforest Ecology

Mongabay.com: Amazon Wildlife

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15: Cayenne

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Population: 66,149 (1999)

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16: Paramaribo

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Population: approximately 250,000

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17: Brasilia, capital of Brazil

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Population: 2,529,580

In 1960, Brasilia replaced Rio de Janeiro as the capital of Brazil. This change was part of an effort to increase development of the interior regions of Brazil, including Legal Amazonia.

About Brasilia

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18: Rio de Janeiro, former capital of Brazil

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Population: 6,136,652

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19: Georgetown

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Population: 247,588

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20: Caracas

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Population: 1,949,630

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21: Bogotá

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Population: 7,137,849

Más sobre Bogotá

22: Quito

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Population: 1,594,883

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23: Lima

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Population: 8,057,397

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24: La Paz

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Bolivia's administrative capital
Population: 883,465

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25: Sucre

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Bolivia's constitutional and judicial capital.
Population: 283,547

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47: Anapu

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The city of Anapu was made famous in 2005 when Sister Dorothy Stang, a nun who advocated for the rural poor and the environment, was murdered by a powerful rancher in the region. Although Stang's case was very famous, she has not been the only victim of violence in a region where ranchers and associated gunmen are known to exploit poor workers. In response to the outcry over Stang's death, Brazilian president Lula da Silva agreed to create an 8.15 million acre reserve and a 1.1 million acre national park in the region.

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48: Town

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This town's grid is formed around the highway.

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50: Shivankoreni

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The Machiguenga Community at Shivankoreni has been heavily influenced by the Camisea company's construction of a pipeline through their land. After a pipeline spill, members of the community observed a reduction in fish populations.

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51: Roosevelt Reservation

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The Roosevelt Reservation is home to the Cinta Larga people. There is a large diamond mine under the reservation. Mining is illegal, except on a small scale when conducted by local indigenous people. Since 1999, there has been violent conflict between the Cinta Larga people and outsiders who have illegally mined diamonds and other valuable resources.

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52: Jarawara

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In 2000, the total Jarawara population was 160. The Jarawara are agriculturalists who also hunt and fish.

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53: Belém

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Population: 1,465,670

Belém on Wikipedia

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54: Manaus

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Population: 1,690,331
During the first half of the twentieth century, rubber production was the main industrial activity in the Brazilian port city of Manaus. Manaus became a free trade zone in the 1960s, relaxing economic restrictions in order to encourage foreign investment and development. Today, Manaus is a major industrial center and an enormous city in the heart of the Amazon. It primarily produces electronics, chemicals, refined petroleum, soap, and ships. Manaus also supports the mineral and agricultural activities of the surrounding regions.

Manaus on Wikipedia

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55: Cuiabá

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Population: 541,022

Cuiabá on Wikipedia

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56: Santarém

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Population: 190,811

Santarém on Wikipedia

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57: Porto Velho

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Population: 319,519

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58: Rio Branco

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Population: 276,955

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59: Maraba

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Population: 152,023

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60: Barcelos

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Population: 24,197

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61: Santa Cruz

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Population: 28,551

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62: Pucallpa

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Population: 339,413

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63: Iquitos

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Population: 468,687

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64: Florencia

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Population: 137,659

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65: CABI (Capitanía de Alto y Bajo Izozog) TCO and Integrated Management Area (KINP)

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13.1 million acres

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66: Yuquí Community Forest

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300,000 acres

BBC article

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67: Coinacapa Cooperative

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Acreage unavailable

Coincapa website (spanish)

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68: Tocantins Extractive Reserve

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22,931 acres

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69: Quilomobo do Frexal Extractive Reserve

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17,421 acres

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70: Chico Mendes Extractive Reserve

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2.4 million acres

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71: Alto Juro Extractive Reserve

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1.3 million acres

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76: Urucu Gas Processing Center

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The gas and oil from the Urucu fields primarily supplies electricity to the Brazilian cities of Manaus and Porto Velho. A natural gas pipeline has been constructed from Urucu to Manaus. Supporters of the pipeline praise the project because natural gas is less polluting than petroleum or coal. But some have criticized the project for its negative impacts on the environment and local populations.

Three perspective on the Urucu gas line:

Amazon Watch

Scandinavian Oil-Gas Magazine

Mongabay.com

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77: ADM Facility and Farm

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ADM Website

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78: Bunge Facility and Farm

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Bunge Website

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79: Cargill Facility

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Cargill, a U.S. company known as the "grain giant," has farms and processing plants in every continent except Antarctica.
In 2003, Cargill opened up a soy processing plant in Santarém on the banks of the Amazon River. Greenpeace led an effort against Cargill because their farming techniques led to deforestation. The Santarém facility was eventually shut down by the Brazilian government because the construction of the facility did did not comply with federal environmental laws.

Read more about the controversy:

Cargill Website

The Independent article

The Christian Science Monitor article

CorpWatch article

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