People may also become more vulnerable to a variety of infectious diseases. We use CFCs in the air-conditioners that cool our homes, cars and schools. Plastics and computer chips are made with the help of CFCs. Tropical Rainforests One out of every four purchases made at pharmacies is a product derived from rainforest species. Many plants are harvested for medicinal purposes.
Tropical forests contain the finest hardwood timber in the world.
Rainforests play a vital role in the absorption of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The rainforests are being destroyed even though they contain half the world's trees and possibly as many as 10 million species of plants and animals. In the Amazon, for instance, large tracks of the forest are presently being cleared to meet the demand for wood products. The Brazilian government has provided incentives for their people to slash, burn, and clear areas to make room for farms. Here farmers graze beef cattle for the fast food industry of North America.