The extraction of mineral resources from forests often have consequences that are far more damaging than the mining process itself. The Grande Carajas Project in the eastern Amazon includes mines of iron ore, copper, bauxite and nickel. While the main iron-ore mine has had little impact on the forest since it began production in 1985, a big problem arises in the form of the charcoal-powered smelters which convert the ore into pig iron. The source of charcoal is the surrounding forest.
There are concerns that Grande Carajas will repeat the sad experience in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, where pig-iron production resulted in the destruction of two-thirds of the state's forests. The Carajas project will involve the conversion of 12.4 million acres of forest to croplands, 7.4 million acres to cattle ranches, and, so far, 3.7 million acres for the smelter charcoal.
