amazon rainforest

• What is the amazon?

  The Amazon is the largest tropical rainforest on Earth. It sits within the Amazon River basin, covers some 40% of the South American continent and includes parts of eight South American countries.
• Amazon facts

  • It is home to 1000 species of bird and 60,000 species of plants• 10 million species of insects live in the Amazon• It is home to 20 million people, who use the wood, cut down trees for farms and for cattle.• It covers 2.1 million square miles of land• The Amazon is home to almost 20% of species on Earth

   Current statistics suggest that we have lost 20% of Amazon rainforest.
• How is carbon in the rainforest?

  Tropical forests are very important stores of carbon, and in their untouched state act as carbon sinks.  It is thought that there are approximately 100 PgC in aboveground biomass (AGB) in Amazonia. The Amazon Forest covers an estimated 5.3 million sq km and holds 17% of the global terrestrial vegetation carbon stock
• what do trees in amazon do?

  Untouched Amazon forests take in more carbon dioxide than they put back into the atmosphere. This shows that the Amazon forests help reduce global warming by lowering the planet's greenhouse gas levels.
• What happens when trees are dead?

  Dead Amazonian trees emit an estimated 1.9 billion tons (1.7 billion metric tons) of carbon to the atmosphere each year. In a normal year, the Amazon rainforest absorbs about 2.2 billion tons (2 billion metric tons) of carbon dioxide.  This means that untouched tropical forests act as a SINK for carbon. 
• How is Water in the amazon?

  The water cycle is very active within the Amazon rainforest, and it interlinks the lithosphere, atmosphere and biosphere.  The basin is drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries.  Rainfall across the Amazon is very high.  Average rainfall across the whole Amazon basin is approximately 2300 mm annually. In some areas of the northwest portion of the Amazon basin, yearly rainfall can exceed 6000
• what is the first point about water in rainforests?

  1. Up to half of the rainfall in some areas may never reach the ground, being intercepted by the forest and re-evaporated into the atmosphere.
• what is the second point about water?

  2. Additional evaporation occurs from ground and river surfaces or is released into the atmosphere by transpiration from plant leaves (in which plants release water from their leaves during photosynthesis)
• what is the third point about water?

  3. This moisture contributes to the formation of rain clouds, which release the water back onto the rainforest. In the Amazon, 50-80 percent of moisture remains in the ecosystem’s water cycle. The moisture created by rainforests travels around the world.  When forests are cut down, less moisture goes into the atmosphere and rainfall declines, sometimes leading to drought. These have been made worse by deforestation
• what are the 6 changes to water and carbon cycles in the amazon?

  • agriculture
  • logging
  • road building
  • mineral extraction
  • energy development
  • settlement and population growth
• what about agriculture?

  Agriculture (to grow crops like Soya or Palm oil) or for pastureland for cattle grazing
• what about logging?

  Logging – This involves cutting down trees for sale as timber or pulp.  Logging can be either selective or clear cutting. Selective logging is selective because loggers choose only wood that is highly valued, such as mahogany. Clear-cutting is where loggers are interested in all types of wood and therefore cut all the trees down, thus clearing the forest.
• what about road building?

  Road building – trees are also clear for roads.  Roads are an essential way for the Brazilian government to allow development of the Amazon rainforest.  However, unless they are paved many of the roads are unusable during the wettest periods of the year. 
• what about mineral extraction?

  Mineral extraction – forests are also cleared to make way for huge mines. The Brazilian part of the Amazon has mines that extract iron, manganese, nickel, tin, bauxite, beryllium, copper, lead, tungsten, zinc and gold!
• what about energy development?

  Energy development – This has focussed mainly on using Hydro Electric Power, and there are 150 new dams planned for the Amazon alone.  The dams create electricity as water is passed through.  Dams displace many people and the reservoirs they create flood large area of land, which would previously have been forest.  They also alter the hydrological cycle and trap huge quantities of sediment behind them.
• what about settlement and pop growth?

  Settlement & population growth – populations are growing within the Amazon Forest and along with them settlements.  Many people are migrating to the forest looking for work associated with the natural wealth of this environment.
• what are the atmospheric impacts of deforestation?

  Deforestation causes important changes in the energy and water balance of the Amazon. Pasturelands and croplands (e.g. soya beans and corn) have a higher albedo and decreased water demand, evapotranspiration and canopy interception compared with the forests they replace.
• how has deforestation contributed to ckimate change?

  Tropical forests are very important carbon sinks, but deforestation and degradation are turning these sinks into carbon SOURCES.  The degradation (reduction in quality of tropical forests) and deforestation releases the carbon stored within the trees back into the atmosphere. Around 30% of anthropogenic carbon emissions come from burning the rainforests alone. Forests that experienced disturbances such as logging and fires store 40% less carbon than undisturbed forests.
• what are the impacts of deforestation on rivers?

  Trees also help continue the water cycle by returning water vapor to the atmosphere. When trees are removed this cycle is severely disrupted and areas can suffer more droughts.
• what are the consequences of deforestation for the water cycle?

  1. There is increased soil erosion and weathering of rainforest soils as water acts immediately upon them rather than being intercepted.2. Flash floods are more likely to happen as there is less interception and absorption by the forest cover.3. Conversely, the interruption of normal water cycling has resulted in more droughts in the forest, increasing the risk of wildfires4. More soil and silt is being washed into rivers, resulting in changes to waterways and transport5. Disrupt water supplies to many people in Brazil