Human Impact

The human impact in the Wet Tropics is low, especially in comparison to other tropical forest regions, as about 80% of the original cover is still present since the first European settlement. However, there are areas of lowland forest that have been cleared through logging for infrastructural purposes, such as for access roads and transmission lines, and the expansion of the sugarcane industry. Furthermore, other factors that have contributed to the degradation of the overall integrity of the Wet Tropics include invasive species, fragmentation, the “altered hydrological and fire regimes” (UNESCO), and climate change.

Logging in Queensland Australia before it was prohibited in 1987
http://www.rainforest.org.au/

Known as the “rainforest people,” 18 Aboriginal tribal groups used various wildlife such as toxic plants, which required “complex treatment to make them safe to eat” (Commonwealth of Australia). The Aborigines today are centered around the Bloomfield River and Murray Upper.

(http://www.yungaburra.com/site/wp-content/uploads/aborigines_EHS.jpg)