If we don't do anything to stop it, we'll soon find out.

如果我們不採取任何行動去阻止，我們很快就會知道了。

The Amazon rainforest creates 20% of the Earth's oxygen.

亞馬遜雨林製造地球上百分之 20 的氧氣。

It's home to 30% of the planet's species, and it holds the secrets to treating some of our most deadly diseases.

這裡居住著全球百分之 30 的物種，並掌握著某些致命疾病的治療關鍵。

If we destroy the Amazon rainforest, the consequences would be disastrous, and they'd be felt all over the world.

如果我們摧毀了亞馬遜雨林，就會帶來災難性的後果，而且全世界都會有感。

Could we survive without it?

沒有它我們能夠存活嗎？

Why would it have a giant impact on our healthcare?

為什麼這會對我們的醫療保健有巨大的衝擊？

And would we ever be able to bring it back?

以及，我們有任何可能讓它恢復嗎？

This is WHAT IF.

這裡是大膽科學。

And here's what would happen if the Amazon rainforest disappear.

而接下來是如果亞馬遜雨林消失，會發生什麼事。

Recently, massive forest fires have become the biggest threat to the Amazon's survival.

最近，大規模的森林火災成為了亞馬遜存亡的最大威脅。

But unfortunately, the fires are just a part of a much bigger problem.

但不幸的是，大火只是問題的冰山一角。

For example, farming, mining, and logging are already responsible for three football fields' worth of deforestation per minute.

舉例來說，耕作、採礦和伐木已經造成每分鐘三個足球場大小的森林退化。

If we don't do anything to stop this, the Amazon rainforest will disappear eventually.

如果我們不採取任何行動去阻止這件事，亞馬遜雨林最終將會消失。

And we'd lose any chance we have in the battle against climate change.

而且我們會失去所有對抗氣候變遷的機會。

The Amazon rainforest is one of the most incredible places on Earth.

亞馬遜雨林是地球上最充滿驚奇的地方之一。

It covers 40 percent of South America, drives the South American economy, and stores 86 billion tons of carbon that would otherwise be polluting our atmosphere.

它覆蓋南美洲百分之 40 的面積、推動南美洲的經濟，並儲存著本可能污染我們大氣的 860 億噸碳。

With an area that's this important, you'd think we would do everything in our power to protect it.

你認為我們應該會竭盡全力去守護這塊如此重要的地區。

But we don't.

但是我們沒有。

Since 1978, an estimated 750,000 square kilometers (289,000 square miles) of rainforest have been destroyed, all thanks to humans.

多虧了人類，從 1978 年開始已經累積大約 75 萬平方公里 (28.9 萬平方英里) 的雨林被摧毀。

If this trend continues, the Amazon rainforest could disappear within 100 years.

如果這個趨勢繼續下去，亞馬遜雨林可能在 100 年內消失。

How bad would that be for our planet?

那對我們的星球會有多糟的影響？

Well, let's take a look.

讓我們來看看。

For starters, we'd be losing a huge amount of our planet's biodiversity.

首先，我們會失去極大量的生物多樣性。

The Amazon rainforest has more plant and animal species than any other terrestrial ecosystem on Earth.

亞馬遜雨林所擁有的動、植物物種遠多於地球上任何陸地生態系。

If we destroy the Amazon, we'll be destroying all that diversity too, and wiping out an entire ecosystem at the same time.

如果我們摧毀了亞馬遜，我們也將摧毀所有那些多樣性，同時抹殺掉整個生態系。

That would have huge effects on the Earth.

那會給地球帶來巨大的影響。

We'd all quickly realize how much we've been relying on the Amazon's resources for food and medicine.

我們就會很快了解到，我們有多麼依賴亞馬遜來提供食物和藥品。

Most people are surprised when they find out that hundreds of prescription drugs have come from things in the Amazon rainforest.

大部分人對於數百種處方藥的成分是來自於亞馬遜雨林這件事感到很驚訝。

We're not just talking about simple herbal remedies either.

我們討論的不只是簡單的藥草治療。

We're talking about full-fledged cancer-fighting drugs that are so important that they've been classified as essential medicines by the World Health Organization.

我們討論的是發展成熟的抗癌藥物，這些藥物非常重要，它們甚至被世界衛生組織評定為基本藥物。

And we haven't even scratched the surface yet!

而這還只是它的一點點皮毛呢！

Scientists estimate that they've studied less than five percent of the plants in the rainforest for potential medicinal benefits.

科學家估算，他們只研究了雨林中不到百分之五有潛在藥學利益的植物。

So who knows what other essential treatments we could lose without the rainforest?

所以誰知道沒有了雨林我們還會失去哪些重要的治療方法？

But the most critical problem we'd face if the Amazon completely disappeared would be a faster pace of climate change.

但如果亞馬遜徹底消失，我們將要面臨最嚴峻的問題是，更加快速的氣候變遷。

If the Amazon rainforest continues to wither and die, it will stop being a source of oxygen.

如果亞馬遜雨林持續凋零、死亡，它將不再是氧氣供應源。

Instead, it will begin to give off carbon, which we all know is fueling climate change.

取而代之的是開始釋放碳，而我們都知道這會對氣候變遷火上加油。

Right now the Amazon has a natural stockpile of carbon reserves.

現在，亞馬遜擁有天然的碳儲存槽。

Anywhere from 90 to 140 billion tons of the stuff.

有 90 到 140 噸的這玩意兒。

If we woke up tomorrow and found the Amazon destroyed, especially by fire, all that carbon would be floating in the atmosphere.

若我們明天起床後發現亞馬遜被毀掉了，尤其是被大火，那這些全部的碳將會流動在大氣之中。

Some experts believe that if this happens, we would lose the battle against climate change.

有些專家相信，若這真的發生了，我們將在氣候變遷的這場戰役中敗陣下來。

But it's not all doom and gloom; there is still hope for the Amazon rainforest.

但前景並非一片黑暗，亞馬遜雨林仍然有希望。

Through studies conducted over the past several decades, researchers have found that tropical forests may be able to survive human-caused destruction.

通過過去數十年的研究，研究者發現熱帶森林或許有能力可以倖免於人為破壞。

Even without human help, a rainforest can start growing again if it has enough seedlings.

即便沒有人類的幫助，只要有足夠的幼苗，雨林仍可以再次生長。

However, this can only be successful if the rainforest isn't always under attack.

然而，只有雨林不再遭受到攻擊，這個方法才能成功。

So what can you do to help?

那麼，你可以如何幫忙？

Well for starters, don't eat as much beef.

首先，不要吃那麼多牛肉。

Processed beef products, such as fast-food hamburgers, are full of illegally-sourced beef from the rainforest.

加工的牛肉食品，像是速食漢堡，充滿了來自於雨林的非法牛肉。

Reduce the amount of paper you use, and choose renewable energy products whenever you can.

減少你使用的紙張數量，並盡可能地選擇使用可再生能源的產品。

Renewable energy reduces the amount of carbon we spewed into the atmosphere from fossil fuels, many of which come from the Amazon rainforest.

可再生能源能減少我們從化石燃料取得後排入大氣的碳，這些碳大部分來自於亞馬遜雨林。

Maybe, if we all work together, we can restore this beautiful rainforest to its former glory.

或許，如果我們齊心協力，我們可以讓這美麗的雨林回復到它從前的光景。

But that's a topic for another WHAT IF.

不過，這又是後話了。