The Congo rainforest

• what countries does this cover

  6 in total: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon
• basic info

  -covers nearly 179,000,000 ha

  -makes up 18% of the world's tropical rainforests

  -2nd largest continuous area of rainforest in the world

  -2/3 is found in the DRC

  -57% of the DRC is rainforest

  -the Congo river flows through it with is the 2nd largest river I the world
• what is the water cycle like here

  -the Congo rive basin is the 2nd largest in the world and covers 3.4 million km2

  -water is cycles though precipitation, river runoff, ET, water recycling, water vapour transport, etc.

  -flows include precipitation- the Congo receives high amounts of precipitation all year round with an avg of 1553mm per year, there are 2 wetter seasons in April an October due to it being under the low pressure Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)
• give some examples of the biotic component in the Congo

  -Maobi tree (emergent)

  -African Mahogany (canopy)

  -around 11,000 plant species

  -gorrilas

  -bonobos

  -around 400 mammal species

  -216 amphibian species

  -280 reptile species
• what is the carbon cycle like in the Congo

  -peat bog-145,000 sq. km1/3 of all tropical peat 30.6bn tonnes of carbon v. important carbon sink.

  -hot+ humid= fast decomposition conditions.
• what are the reasons for deforestation in the Congo

  -civil unrest/war -> have experienced 2 civil wars in the past 30 yrs (in the DRC) so many sought protection in the rainforest

  -increased demand for agricultural land -> as pop. increases more land is needed for substinence farming (only farming for your own needs not for trade)

  -mining-> gold, diamonds, cobalt, copper, oil, coltan and cassiterite (used in electronic devices)

  -logging-> 30% of the Congo is covered by industrial logging concessions some of which are sustainable selective logging however illegal logging is also prevalent
• human impacts on the water cycle

  - precipitation would decrease along with ET as 55% of precipitation is recycled water from the Congo water basin

  -evaporation would decrease as interception will also decrease so water won't evaporate

  -transpiration would fall as there would be no trees to carry it out

  -river run off would also increase as ET decreases so more water on the surface and in the base flow increasing discharge
• human impacts on the carbon cycle

  less trees means less carbon stored in biomass so more is stored in the atmosphere so output in higher than input into stores plus when trees are cut down it realises tonnes of carbon
• how many in the DRC rely on the rainforest

  40 million
• how was REDD+ involved

  in 2012 the DRC government agreed to a UN REDD+ (Reduce carbon Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation of forests) strategy to protect the rainforest
• how was CAFI involved

  in 2015 the DRC government signed up to the Central African Forest Initiative that provides funding for gov. programmes to increase use of sustainable farming techniques and strategies, provide energy alternatives to fuel from wood, minimise impact of mining, urbanisation and communication routes pulpit also aims to increase rural household incomes by 10-20% whilst reducing carbon emissions by 20%
• what id deforestation like in Maï Ndombe

  -has one of the highest rates of deforestation in the DRC due to being closes to the pop. centre of Kinshasa
• what threats are there in the Maï Ndombe Rforest

  -unplanned deforestation via slash and burn for agriculture

  -illegal logging for fuel for residents

  -forest loss for infrastructure
• how did REDD+ help Maï Ndombe

  -the Maï Ndombe project is funded by REDD+ using money gained form carbon trading schemes

  -it covers 300 ha of Rforest and 26 villages with a total pop. of 50,000

  -it was covered by 2 illegal logging concession, later revoked by DRC gov.

  -wanted to improve quality of life for the locals

  -schools, hospitals, and wells have been built
• how has REDD+ in Maï Ndombe helped

  -education on more efficient agricultural practiced and funding has provided the tools and seeds needed to reduce amount of forest land cleared for agriculture as yields are increasing

  -jobs have been created for local villagers connected to forestry - 'forest police' to ensure illegal deforestation doesn't occur plus forest nursery workers are growing trees and enacting reforestation