No- this isn't US economics where there's a cost below which land use doesn't make sense for them. These people were cutting and burning these forests just for

No- this isn't US economics where there's a cost below which land use doesn't make sense for them. These people were cutting and burning these forests just for timber and firewood, and have been for decades. Even in places where it's banned to do so, and they risk jail. A smaller profit margin isn't going to prevent them from utilizing the one resource at their disposal.