Carbon dioxide or CO2 is a 'greenhouse gas', which helps to retain the heat of the sun within the Earth's atmosphere. Before humans started destroying the rainforests, they covered 15% of the Earth's land area, today, they cover less than 3%. The Xingu river is the site of the world's third largest hydro-electric dam, the Belo Monte project where 310 square miles (500 square km) will be flooded. This post focuses on the specific effects of climate change on tropical rainforests, and what they mean for populations around the planet. Once roads are built to reach the mines, it becomes easier for illegal logging and poaching to take place. Climate Change and Agriculture : A Review of Impacts and Adaptations. The Sumatran Orangutan is listed as “critically endangered” and the Bornean Orangutan as “endangered”. To be able to identify/define and … Tropical rainforests experience this tropical climate, a climate without any dry season. Burning the trees and the peatlands beneath them is highly polluting (see below) although the ash improves the soil’s fertility before planting. The rate at which the forests have been cleared has accelerated during the latter part of the 20th and into the 21st century. Brazil Faces Drop in Crop Productivity. To be able to explain why climate change is an indirect threat to the health of the tropical rainforest; Competency: 1. Soy plants may also be genetically modified - still a controversial issue. It is used in bread, cereals, chocolates, pizzas, cleaning products, chewing gum and even shampoo. At the centre of the oil palm fruits, much like a nectarine, there is a stone, or ‘kernel’ and this is chopped and mashed up to produce the high protein ingredient palm kernel meal. We also train farmers in climate-smart agriculture methods, helping them to adapt to current climate impacts and prepare for future challenges. People also log trees to make fortunes. It is possible that some of its forests may be opened up for mineral exploration. The Young People's Trust for the Environment is a charity which aims to encourage young people's understanding of the environment and the need for sustainability. As well as damaging people's health, the mercury used goes on to pollute river systems and is the second-worse source of mercury pollution in the world, after the burning of fossil fuels. It is estimated that 33% of all the products in your local supermarket contain palm oil - that’s a lot of products! Nearly 800 square kilometres of forest were cut down during the first three months of 2020 — 51% more than during the same period in 2019. Pounds, J. Indonesia is already the world’s third highest emitter of carbon dioxide after the USA and China because of the burning of its rainforests and peat lands to clear areas for growing palm oil. To be able to describe and explain the main causes of deforestation 3. Global warming could decrease the habitat of many endemic vertebrate species which live in the cooler upland and montane rainforests, leaving only isolated pockets of rainforest for them to live in. Indonesia and Malaysia together produce more than 80 percent of the world’s palm oil. After logging and/or burning of the rainforest, cleared land is sold to local farmers for cattle grazing. 2) An increase in worldwide demand for tropical hardwoods has put a greater strain on the rainforests. In burning the rainforests Indonesia is also burning the peatlands below which store masses of carbon. A., Fogden, M. P., Foster, P. N., … & Young, B. E. (2006). Brazil suffered an energy crisis in 2006 and is keen to develop this source of power. Though both natural and human threats are responsible for loss of rainforests, maximum negative impacts are contributed by human intervention. Tropical Storms - While smaller tropical storms do not pose much of a problem to rainforests, larger storms (like hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons) can cause extensive damage. The destruction of the rainforest could affect the world's climate. As populations have grown and demands for land and timber have grown greater, so the deforestation has accelerated. Unlike the four seasons of spring, summer, fall, and winter that most of us know of, there are only two seasons in the tropical … Tropical forests are taking up less carbon dioxide from the air, reducing their ability to act as “carbon sinks” and bringing closer the prospect of accelerating climate breakdown. However, in any rainforest it is only the top layer of soil, known as the “topsoil” that is fertile. Climate change is the transformation of the weather based on its various statistics recorded over a long-term basis. 80% of deforested areas in Brazil are used for cattle ranching and are the greatest source of carbon emissions in Brazil. When the trees are removed, the flying rivers stop flowing. Most of the world's soya comes from South America where areas of rainforest, as well as other habitats like the savannahs have been planted with this crop. Please donate £1 to help YPTE to continue its work of inspiring young people to look after our world. Climate. This is what Cool Earth has done and will continue to do until tropical deforestation and degradation plays no part in climate change. Warming global temperatures affect the atmospheric systems that bring wet seasons to the equatorial climate. Deforestation is happening due to the following reasons: Farming - large areas are cleared for pastoral farming. For each 1C rise in temperature, tropical regions now release about 2 billion extra tonnes of carbon-containing gases On the contrary, burning the rainforest is like creating a huge bonfire, throwing massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. An estimated 70 - 80% of logging in Brazil and Indonesia is illegal. 1) The growth of populations in countries with rainforest. For example, teak and mahogany are very valuable hardwoods and are profitable when sold. Valuable trees are harvested and the rest are burnt to clear the land for the farming of palm oil. As much as 40 per cent of the Amazon rainforest could be transformed into drier savanna-like landscape if rainfall levels continue to drop as a result of … Rainforests needs to be in good climate because otherwise the plants will die. According to the IUCN, over the last ten years their numbers have halved and up to 5000 are killed every year, despite their status as protected species. Climate change is posing an ever-increasing threat to our species. Many feel this is a good exchange and may improve their standard of living, although the reality can be far from that. Rainforests are forests which grow in areas of high rainfall. This lesson is based upon an exam question within the subject specification and SoW. During the day, the rainforests absorb huge amounts of carbon dioxide from the air to make food in a process called photosynthesis. Beneath rainforests there often lies a wealth of natural resources in the form of mineral and gold deposits. The average precipitation in tropical … It is also the case that with the example of soya, it doesn’t usually benefit the local people who are often violently forced off their lands and then sometimes forced to work on the plantations. Imported products are products grown or made in other countries and then shipped to the UK, the opposite of this is exports - products made in the UK and sent to other countries. Mercury is banned in Indonesia but is readily available for purchase by individuals. Extinction risk from climate change. Some are pets, some are farm animals which provide us with food or milk, but one thing they do have in common - they are contributing to the destruction of Asia’s rainforests. See our orangutan factsheet below for more information.