If current trends in deforestation, droughts, forest fires global greenhouse gas emissions continue, then most of the Amazon rainforest could be lost of severely destroyed by 2030.
Global warming is having an effect on the Amazon rainforest, and if actions aren't taken soon to tackle climate change, then the Amazon could dry up and die, which will in turn have a catastrophic affect on the global climate.
Carbon dioxide is stored in the canopies of the Amazon rainforest, and when trees are cut down, burnt or left to rot, this carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. Global deforestation is to blame for 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Regional rainfall is also effected by the deforestation of the Amazon, as the trees transform the sun's energy into water vapour and generate clouds and rain, and when the trees are destroyed, less water is released into the atmosphere, and fewer clouds form, which could lead to more droughts and crop failures across the world. Scientists predict that deforestation of the Amazon could impact grain belts of South and North America, and potentially Europe as well.
The severe droughts in the Amazon in 2005 and 2010 show the extent to which the climate could become, with communities living in the Amazon isolated by low water levels, unable to get to schools, markets and hospitals. Dead fish contaminated river water supplies and crops failed.
Article
No comments:
Post a Comment