Brazil flora risk greater than thought: study

Yahoo News 1 Jul 09;

RIO DE JANEIRO (AFP) – Nearly 2,300 plant species are at risk of disappearing from flora-rich Brazil, many more than once thought, according to an academic study released on Wednesday.

The research, carried out by 175 scientists, indicates the Brazilian government has dramatically underestimated the risk to the country's plant species caused by deforestation, fires and urbanization.

Last year Brasilia said 472 plants were at risk in a country that contains an estimated 15 percent of the world's flora species.

Jose Maria Cardoso, a conservation expert who took part in the project, said the 2,291 species identified as being in danger were many more than the government's "conservative" estimates, which did not take into account rare species.

"Our criteria was to accept that rare plants are automatically in danger," Cardoso told Brazilian daily O Globo.

The study analyzed 752 areas considered "strategic for retaining the country's biodiversity," amounting to 16 percent of Brazil.