A new study cited by multiple outlets warns that the Amazon rainforest could reach a “tipping point” that leads to widespread dieback as deforestation and climate warming continue. New Scientist reports that at least 15% of the Amazon has already been lost and that additional forest destruction could trigger large-scale rainforest degradation with as little as 1.5°C of global warming. Mongabay similarly reports that the risk is rising faster than previously thought, based on research published in the journal Nature. It finds that deforestation on the order of 22–28% of the rainforest, combined with 1.5–1.9°C of global warming, could bring tipping-point conditions within the 2040s. The accounts agree that the combination of land clearing and rising temperatures is central to the threat, and that the timing of potential ecosystem collapse could be earlier than older estimates suggested. Overall, the coverage describes a scenario in which incremental deforestation and warming could substantially increase the probability of large-scale shifts in the rainforest’s functioning, potentially affecting rainfall patterns and forest cover.
Study warns Amazon rainforest tipping point could be reached by 2030s–2040s
A new study cited by multiple outlets warns that the Amazon rainforest could reach a “tipping point” that leads to widespread dieback as deforestation and climate warming continue. New Scientist repor...
- At least 15% of the Amazon rainforest has already been lost to deforestation.
- The risk of a rainforest “tipping point” increases when deforestation combines with global warming.
- A Nature-published study projects tipping-point conditions if deforestation reaches about 22–28% of the rainforest.
- The study links that tipping risk to global warming levels of roughly 1.5–1.9°C.
- Possible timing for tipping is described as occurring in the 2030s to 2040s, depending on conditions.
Deforestation coupled with climate change is rapidly pushing the Amazon Rainforest toward a perilous tipping point that could come much sooner than previously thought. That’s the warning from a new paper, published in Nature, which determined that deforestation of 22-28% of the rainforest, combined with 1.5-1.9° Celsius (2.7-3.4° Fahrenheit) of global warming, could trigger a […]
3 months agoAt least 15 per cent of the Amazon has already been lost, and further destruction could unleash widespread rainforest dieback with as little as 1.5°C of global warming
3 months ago
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