Poppy and coca cultivation is destroying the ecology of central Colombia
illegal cultivation of poppy and coca for opium and cocaine has brought about some serious environmental changes in the mountains of San Jorge De Las Hermosas in central Columbia. The damage caused by the nefarious activities is not restricted to the social and political ethos. The climate of region has become extremely dry and as farmers are realising, production of coffee -- the country's largest legal export -- has fallen alarmingly in the last four years.
The primary reason for this is the clearing of lichen-laden trees on the Andean mountains (lichen are plant organisms composed of fungus and algae). The trees intercept clouds and fog, leading to condensation. Vast stretches of cleared forests are giving way to poppy plants. The absence of trees to hold the soil has also caused large-scale soil erosion and landslides in nearby Chaparral. A glut of fertilisers, herbicides, and insecticides used to protect the illegal crops is poisoning the environment. Peasants who work in the fields are directly exposed to the toxins through inhalation and skin contact.
After processing coca leaves for producing cocaine (the paste of which is made by mixing leaves with cement, gasoline, and sulphuric acid), waste is dumped into the Inirada river. This has adversely affected fish populations downstream. Fisherfolk complain of rapidly decreasing yields.
Moreover, Colombia is a stronghold of biodiversity. Ranked by the number of species in relation to the size of the country, it comes fourth after Brazil, Madagascar, and Surinam. This diversity of life is threatened by narcotics producers. As the illegal cultivation is carried out in remote areas of the forests controlled by guerrillas, very little has been done by experts to assess the impact of environmental degradation.
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