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I'd have to agree to a degree that the idea of any development is not entirely eco. Land is most eco if left as is.

However, we have to realize here that land is land and if I don't buy it and use it ecologically, then perhaps someone else will buy it up, log it, slash it, burn it, and build a parking lot.

The fact of the matter is that if we are to take positive action to help preserve that land ecologically, then as much as it sounds good to buy it and just leave it as is, that will rarely happen.

I've been living in Belize, and if land is accessible by roads, then squatters will move in, slash and burn rainforest, then farm it in an unsustainable manner and move on when they need another area to farm in. Letting it sit as is, does not help, and the Belize government doesn't have the funding to police their jungles for illegal milpa farmers.

So what incentive does the average human have to help save some rainforest.

Well we all need a place to live, right?

So my incentive, that actually sparks the passion within me to take action, is to work with a team of eco-developers and build a sustainable ecovillage in the jungle.

I for one, don't have the time nor money to spend on simply preserving some rainforest, making it untouchable by human developers. However, I do have time and what money I have to work on a project to build my own home in a ecovillage community of like-minded individuals that want to develop in a manner that considers the environment and ecosystem in part of the bottom-up structuring of such a place.

To me, the environmental concern being a priority is what entices me to invest my time and money to such a project, and my being a steward of the land by living on it is the key to making it work that way.

I don't doubt that there are many "Eco-frauds" out there, but even the "Eco-frauds" are at least considering the environment more-so than other developers, and if they aren't then they won't be able to attract the right buyers, because eco-investors will see through it.

Thanks for letting me speak my view on the situation. If you're interested in the development I'm a part of in Belize, check out http://BetterInBelize.com

P.S.- I've been living in Central America for a little over a year now, and I've seen wild Tapir's twice (They only ran from me once because I startled them by getting about 15 ft away from them). The howlers don't seem to mind humans either as I see them so often.