Amazon Rainforest Case Study Flashcards
(13 cards)
Outline the Amazon Rainforest
- The Amazon is the largest tropical rainforest in the world, covering about 6.7 million square km in South America
- It is a biodiversity hotspot, home to over 10% of the world’s known species
- Home to more than 400 billion trees from around 16000 species
Outline the Amazon’s role in the carbon cycle
- The Amazon absorbs one quarter of all the CO2 absorbed by all the land on Earth
- Also produces around 20% of the world’s oxygen through photosynthesis
- The Amazon is estimated to store more than 150 GtC
-> Acts as the lungs of the Earth
Outline the Amazon’s role in the Water Cycle
- Amazon River 2nd longest in the world
- Hot and humid, average temperature of 25-28 degrees Celsius, recieves average of 2-3 metres of rainfall per year
What is the impact of human activity on deforestation in the Amazon
Logging for agriculture (eg. Soy farming) and infrastructure developments mean that between 2000 and 2020, the Amazon lost around 17% of its forest cover
Since 1960, 15% of the Amazon has been cleared for agricultural purposes alone
How much did deforestation reduce evapotranspiration by in Mato Grosso?
Deforestation reduced evapotranspiration by around 1km^3 per year from 2000-2010
Name a positive feedback loop caused by deforestation in the Amazon
Deforestation and wildfires feedback loop
How much did wildfires increase from 2023 to 2024 in the Amazon?
Wildfires in 2024 destroyed 150% more land than in 2023
What are the impacts of deforestation on the Amazon?
- Increased likelihood of flash floods due to reduced interception
- Increased soil erosion and weathering due reduced interception
- Increase in soil and silt washed into rivers, resulting in changes in waterways and transport
- Sea level rise will substantially impact lowland areas such as the Amazon River delta
Describe the soy moratorium in the Amazon
- An environmental agreements implemented in 2006 to prevent deforestation for soybean cultivation in the Brazilian Amazon
- Before the moratorium, 30% of soy plantations came from deforested land, after implementation,this dropped to 1.2%
Describe Brazil’s government’s role in reducing deforestation in the Amazon
- Brazil’s government has pledged to eliminate deforestation in the Amazon by 2030
- However, researchers estimate that this will not happen and the maximum deforestation rates could fall by 2030 is 90%
- However, deforestation rates doubled between 2012 and 2019, although deforestation rates have began to drop in 2022
Describe reforestation in the Amazon
- A 20 year initiative in Brazil - the Peugeot-ONF Brazil Project - successfully reforested around 2000 hectares of land
- However, this less than 0.01% of all deforested land over the past 20 years
- Also, trees usually take 20-30 years to mature so will not have immediate impact
Describe monitoring and enforcement in the Amazon
- Satellite monitoring systems such as Brazil’s DETER can detect illegal activities and help reduce deforestation
- Between 2007 and 2011, the implementation of DETER coupled with increased law enforcement contributed to a 60% reduction in deforestation rates
Describe indigenous people’s role in combatting deforestation in the Amazon
- Indigenous communities have proven to be effective stewards of the Amazon Rainforest
- Deforestation in Indigenous territories is up to 83% lower than in unprotected areas
- However, it is difficult to scale up and the effectiveness of Indigenous stewardship depends on the recognition and enforcement of land rights
