The largest cause of deforestation today in rainforests happens when people burn down the forest to farm the land. This is often a short-lived solution to their problems because
1.) the nutrients in the soil get washed away and the forest can turn into a desert.
2.) the forest grows back and through succession takes over the land again.
3.) the population of people is growing and they end up building houses on that land.
4.) the land will become a swamp and the plants on the farm will die