Malaria is transmitted to humans through the bite of a female anopheles mosquito. This insect is often found in hot, tropical areas with bodies of water in which they can lay their larvae. Because of these conditions, malaria is mainly a problem for countries in the Global South, where these environmental conditions are common. However, as these tropical areas are destroyed by deforestation, the boundaries of malaria and other zoonotic diseases may change, as animal to human transmissions increase.
The largest tropical area being confronted with deforestation is the Amazon Rainforest. As it is about the same size as the United States and home to over three million different species, the destructive practice is guaranteed to have a drastic impact on both humans and the environment.
Deforestation has many harmful effects, from global warming to air pollution, but one of the most underrated impacts of this procedure is the increased risk of another pandemic.
When clearing an area, it isn’t just trees that are being removed. Animals are faced with the choice of living in unhealthy and unsafe conditions or being displaced. It is when this decision happens that the risk of a zoonotic disease increases.
Let’s say that the disease-carrying animal decides to move. Once leaving their habitat, they may enter a new environment not prepared or equipped to handle the disease this animal has. This is especially true in urban areas where sanitation is already a health concern. These animals now interact with humans on a much larger scale than before, allowing for the transmission of a disease to be a much quicker and smoother process. This is emphasized by the fact that these areas don’t have the resources or knowledge to fight off these new diseases. Towns and cities located close to deforestation areas are hotspots for zoonotic diseases to spread.
The same problems arise even if the disease-carrying animal stays in its habitat. Most of the deforested land in the Amazon is used for cattle ranching and farmland, meaning that humans are now working and living on land that they hadn’t used before. Once again, these animals are in contact with people in an unprepared and vulnerable state, making conditions perfect for zoonotic transfer. Both of these scenarios consist of increased human exposure to zoonoses, highlighting the root of zoonosis outbreaks.
To take things a step further and consider what may turn a possible epidemic into a full-blown pandemic, the environmental impacts of deforestation must also be considered.
As mentioned before, mass deforestation has been proven to lead to global warming and climate change overall. This massive transition in temperature has allowed for regions once not considered habitual for certain species to now be places where new life can grow, allowing for new diseases to spread.
Looking back at malaria, the type of mosquito that carries this disease needs tropical conditions. Well, as the temperature of the Earth climbs up, these conditions become much more common and new areas can be home to these mosquitos. Once considered eliminated from the United States, malaria reappeared in 2023 with nine locally transmitted cases reported by people who hadn’t recently traveled to any tropical areas.
So, not only are disease-carrying animals able to spread regionally, but also internationally. Malaria isn’t the only disease popping back up in Global North countries. So far, eight cases of dengue fever have been reported as locally transmitted in LA County. Before this year, the mosquito-transmitted disease had never been locally transmitted in California. Similar to malaria, the West Nile virus transfers through mosquito bites and, just like malaria, is increasing in numbers in Global North countries as the globe continues to heat up.
As zoonotic diseases begin to spread more into countries unprepared for this type of problem, the likelihood of a pandemic occurring increases.
Faced with this possibility, the call to mitigate deforestation of the Amazon has never been more necessary. It is the responsibility of the governments and departments in control of the Amazonian region to address this issue. New policies must be implemented that will strike down illegal deforestation practices. For areas near these destructive practices, the goal should be promoting awareness of potential health hazards as well as preparing in case of an outbreak so the disease will be contained. While it can’t be guaranteed that zoonoses won’t spread, procedures and preparations can be put in place to ready nations for when a disease does have the potential to cause a pandemic.