sentences:  The cultivation of bananas requires large amounts of land, large amounts of fertilizers and pesticides, and extensive systems of shallow canals and drainage ditches (Astorga, 1998).This alteration of the landscape inevitably leads to deforestation, and the loss of tropical flora and fauna biodiversity.In order to develop a banana plantation, marshes are drained, streams are channelized, and drainage canals are constructed to prevent flooding of the fields (McCracken 1998).