Topic: Research News
A team of researchers from Brazil is developing a new tool to combat illegal logging in the Amazon. They use isotopes, forms of elements with different masses, to identify where wood was harvested. This can help police catch timber traffickers.
Illegal logging is a major cause of deforestation in the Amazon. To stop this, environmental agencies and law enforcement in Brazil use various tools to determine the origin of timber. However, these methods are not always reliable.
A research group led by professor Luiz Antonio Martinelli at the University of São Paulo (CENA-USP) is creating a new tool to help with this task. They use isotopes, which are forms of elements that have the same atomic number but different masses. For example, oxygen can have 16 or 18 protons in its nucleus.
The team is making a map of the distribution of these isotopes in wood from Amazonian trees. This will help police compare the composition of wood under investigation with the composition of wood from known regions.
Implications
A team of researchers from Brazil is developing a new tool to combat illegal logging in the Amazon. They use isotopes, forms of elements with different masses, to identify where wood was harvested. This can help police catch timber traffickers.
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