Amazon Rainforest Case Study

Question 1

How large is the rainforest?

Answer 1

cover 5.5 million km^2 across 9 countries.

Question 2

How many trees and species are there in the rainforest?

Answer 2

300 billion trees and over 15,000 species

Question 3

how much of the worlds carbon stored in the biomass is in the rainforest?

Answer 3

1/5

Question 4

when was peak deforestation?

Answer 4

30,000 hectares in 1995

Question 5

how many tonnes of carbon is stored in the amazon?

Answer 5

80 to 120 billion tonnes

Question 6

how much carbon does the amazon store each year?

Answer 6

1-3 GTC/year

Question 7

what is the increase in above ground biomass and what is the reason for this?

Answer 7

0.3 to 0.5% due to the higher concentration of carbon in the atmosphere (carbon fertilisation)

Question 8

what was the peak that the amazon could absorb?

Answer 8

2 billion tonnes of co2 each year in the 1990’s

Question 9

what has happened to rates of deforestation recently?

Answer 9

had decreased to 5,000 km^2 but since 2019 have reached levels of 10,000 km^2 in 2019

Question 10

how many miles of forest has been destroyed according to the world bank?

Answer 10

3.9 million miles has been lost

Question 11

compared to the 2 billion tonnes of co2 absorbed in 1990, how much has been absorbed in 2015

Answer 11

1 billion tonnes of co2

Question 12

what percentage of the worlds rainforest is in the amazon?

Answer 12

50%

Question 13

what has happened to the mortality rates of trees since the 1980’s?

Answer 13

increased by more than a third, trees “living fast and dying young”

Question 14

what is the discharge of the amazon river into the atlantic?

Answer 14

175,000 m^3/s, around 15% of all fresh water entering oceans each day.

Question 15

what is an example of a tributary of the amazon?

Answer 15

the Rio Negro, second largest river in the world in terms of discharge, 100m deep and 14km wide near its mouth in Manaus, Brazil.

Question 16

what is the average and highest rainfall in the amazon?

Answer 16

2,300 mm annually, but can exceed 6,000 mm in the northwest portion.

Question 17

what proportion of rainfall may never reach the ground due to interception by rainforest canopy?

Answer 17

1/2

Question 18

what percentage of rain actually reaches the sea?

Answer 18

30%, rest is caught up in a closed system loop.

Question 19

what percentage of the rain that evaporates comes back as rain?

Answer 19

48%

Question 20

what is the rate of deforestation?

Answer 20

19,368 km^2 per year

Question 21

what effect does slash and burn have on the soil?

Answer 21

reduces the relative humidity in the top soil, also sudden evaporation of water increases albedo and temperature. also reduce porosity of soil causing more rainfall damage.

Question 22

how does deforestation decrease rainfall inland?

Answer 22

hydrological biotic pump theory, only shallow cumulous clouds form, causing little rainfall.

Question 23

due to deforestation, what will happen to the amount of solar radiation absorbed?

Answer 23

fall by 11%

Question 24

what effect does pasture lands have on on temperature?

Answer 24

average temperature is 33 degrees, whereas its only 24.1% in rainforests. average temp of soil is 15.5% higher in pasture lands than forest.

Question 25

how much more precipitation is there in forests than pasture lands due to higher evaporation rates?

Answer 25

5-20% more.

Question 26

what is the yearly temperature increase and what will temperatures have increased by in 2050?

Answer 26

0.26% every ten years, increased by 2-3% by 2050.

Question 27

what proportion of the rainforest could die off in the next 100 years?

Answer 27

20-40%

Question 28

what does deforestation affect the soil?

Answer 28

soil in pasture lands contains just 1kg of carbon , whereas soil in forests contains between 4kg and 9kg.

Question 29

what percentage of carbon is lost when forests are burned?

Answer 29

30%-60%. unburned vegetation decays within 10 years

Question 30

how does damage to the soil affect the soil moisture capacity?

Answer 30

higher rates of soil erosion due to lack of roots to bind the soil causes decreased soil moisture capacity and causes more surface run-off.

Question 31

what can happen to the river regime?

Answer 31

more flashy, shorter lag times.

Question 32

what was the international tropical timber agreement (ITTA) of 1983?

Answer 32

all trees that are cut down must be stamped and put on record so that taking excessive amounts of wood from sensitive areas could be avoided.