Amazon Flashcards
What’s the biggest rainforest in the world
The Amazon
Where can rainforests grow
In ever continent aside from Antarctica
What properties for human use do rainforests contain
Properties for medicinal and food use (e.g. palm oil)
How diverse is the ecosystem
One of the richest ecosystems
Cover 6 percent of the planet & responsible for half of the worlds wildlife - plants and animals
How does it respond to the suns rays
Absorbs large amount of solar radiation for photosynthesis
How much of the worlds oxygen does it produce
40%
How much of the Amazon is in Brazil
2/3rds
What’s the location of the Amazon
In the tropics, between the tropics of cancer and Capricorn along the equator. Located in South America - Brazil and parts of Peru and Colombia as well as other South American countries
What’s the climate like
Humid and wet - recieved torrential rainfall between 1500-3000mm annually and there is lots of conventional rainfall.
Lies on the equator where the sun is most concentrated - 2000+mm of annual rainfall . 27c avg temperature
The Amazon river accounts for 15-16% of the world total river discharge into the ocean
Half of the precipitation that falls into the Amazon is generated as a result of evpotranspiration from within the biome itself
How does deforestation affect evapotranspiration
By reducing the number of trees by deforestation there’s a lesser ability to recycle water through evaporation which leads to lower rainfall, global warming, and climate change as this takes away the cooling function of the atmosphere. There is less interception storage.

How does deforestation affect runoff
Logging and mass scale removal of trees expose soil to rain splash which loosens and dislodges soil particles, eroding soil and creating a more impermeable bare surface, which increases runoff
How does deforestation affect soil water transfers
When vegetation is removed, the soil is left exposed to the heavy equatorial rainfall and is rapidly eroded. The removal of topsoil means little vegetation will grow. Also, soil erosion leads to flooding as the soil becomes deposited on the river bed
What are the different causes of rainforest destruction
Agriculture - cattle grazing and growing crops like soya or palm oil
Logging - for pulp for paper or for construction. Can either be clear or selective cutting ( clearing whole areas of forest or choosing expensive trees like mahogany)
Road building - e.g. trans Amazonian highway. Makes more of the untouched forest accessible, which can have many negative repercussions. Most of the roads in Amazon are unusable for most of the year due to the tropical climate with heavy rainfall.
Mineral extraction - forests are cleared to make way for huge mines for materials such as nickel, iron, manganese, tin, tungsten, copper, gold and more. The Carajas mine in the Amazon is the largest iron ore mine in the world
Energy development - mainly hydroelectric power, and there are 150 new dams planned for the Amazon alone. The power is produced by falling water turning a turbine, most of the energy goes towards the mines in the Amazon however. Dams displace many people, they also flood large areas of the land for reservoirs which would’ve been forest,
Settlements and population growth - populations are growing within the Amazon forest and along with the settlements. People are migrating to the forest looking for work associated with the natural wealth of the environment - mining and forestry. The population has grown from 154,000 in 2010 to 220,000 in 2012
THE WWF ESTIMATES 27% OF THE AMAZON WILL BE WITHOUT TREES BY 2030
How can deforestation impact global climate
Tropical rainforests are very important carbon sinks. Can turn them into carbon sources instead of sinks by releasing stored carbon into atmosphere from biosphere. Around 30% of all anthropogenic carbon comes from burning rainforests.
Reduces sequestration and storage and photosynthesis
Brazil is the 6th largest polluter - 75% of their emissions are from deforestation and land use changes
How can the Amazon be managed to reduce impact
Selective logging and replanting - selective loggings of mature trees ensures reservation of rainforest as younger trees get more sun and space to grow. Planned and controlled logging ensures that for every tree logged, another is planted
Education
Ecotourism
Debt for nature swaps - when a country owes money to another, debt can be exchanged for rainforest conservation.
Shifting cultivation - rotating plots of land to allow recovery of soils
