Student Article
The Amazon Rainforest: Could It Become a Desert?
Ecosystem (noun): A community of living organisms and their environment.
Deforestation (noun): The clearing of trees and forests.
Agriculture (noun): The practice of farming.
Vulnerable (adjective): At risk of being harmed or attacked.
Biodiversity (noun): The variety of plant and animal life in a particular habitat.
Carbon sink (noun): A natural place that absorbs and stores more carbon dioxide from the air than it releases.
Indigenous (adjective): Native to a certain place and having existed there for a very long time, used to describe people, plants, and animals.
The Amazon rainforest is one of the most important ecosystems on Earth, but it is currently facing a serious threat from fires and deforestation. In August 2019, news spread around the world about the increasing number of fires in the Amazon. Nearly 50,000 fires were reported in the first eight months of the year, an 84% increase from the same period in 2018.
Does the Amazon rainforest catch fire naturally?
These fires are primarily started by humans to clear land for agriculture. Unlike ecosystems such as the African savannah, the Amazon rainforest is not adapted to deal with fire. The rainforest is too wet to catch fire naturally, so any fires that occur are the result of human activity. Some landowners have legal permission to clear up to 20% of their property by burning trees, but many fires are illegal.
How do fires harm the rainforest?
Dr. Adriane Esquivel-Muelbert, an ecologist at the University of Birmingham, studies the effects of climate change on forests. She explains that fires cause complete destruction, making it difficult for the forest to recover. As more trees die, the surrounding areas become hotter and drier, creating a vicious cycle that makes the rainforest more vulnerable to further fires.
What could happen if the fires continue?
If this trend continues, the Amazon rainforest could reach a tipping point where it transforms into a savannah. This process, known as "savannahfication," would result in a loss of biodiversity and a decrease in the rainforest's ability to act as a carbon sink. The remaining rainforest areas would be threatened by the hotter, drier conditions of the surrounding savannah. The tipping point is still a hypothesis, but researchers have observed changes in the species composition of the rainforest. Droughts favor more drought-tolerant species, while trees that prefer rainforest conditions are dying at higher rates. To prevent this transformation, it is crucial to preserve the forest and reduce deforestation.
Most of the Brazilian Amazon is indigenous land, and deforestation not only harms the environment but also the people who live there. Protecting the Amazon rainforest requires global cooperation and responsible consumption of products that do not contribute to deforestation.
© Amy Arthur / Our Media
Ecosystem (noun): A community of living organisms and their environment.
Deforestation (noun): The clearing of trees and forests.
Agriculture (noun): The practice of farming.
Vulnerable (adjective): At risk of being harmed or attacked.
Biodiversity (noun): The variety of plant and animal life in a particular habitat.
Carbon sink (noun): A natural place that absorbs and stores more carbon dioxide from the air than it releases.
Indigenous (adjective): Native to a certain place and having existed there for a very long time, used to describe people, plants, and animals.