Signal New study: small extra deforestation could tip the Amazon

Summary

The report's key take-aways stress that protecting and restoring nature is a precondition for a safe climate landing, citing research on the Amazon. According to a new study, under current climate projections only a little more deforestation in the Amazon would likely push the region past a tipping point. That would mean losing about two-thirds of the forest that remains. The report points out that climate pathways usually assume forests, wetlands and other ecosystems keep working as carbon sinks, while the land sink already shows signs of weakening and stagnation. It also explains that a weakened Atlantic overturning circulation could shift rainfall patterns over the Amazon. The report holds that bringing warming back below 1.5 C requires phasing out fossil fuels while also reversing other transgressions, above all by protecting the biosphere.