What does the future hold for the Amazon rainforest?

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What does the future hold for the Amazon Rainforest?
Thanks for asking.
It's been two years since we last discussed the Amazon on Do you really know? And even in that time, the outlook for the world's largest tropical rainforest has worsened significantly. A report called Amazonia Against the Clock was released in September, warning that the rainforest could reach a point of no return as soon as 2025 A study published in Nature Climate Change Journal in March 2022 explained that three quarters of the Amazon has lost some of its resilience since the turn of the century. That means it's recovering more slowly from events like droughts and fires. This is largely down to less water evaporating from leaves within the forest, which in turn means less rain. The more deforestation there is, the more the problem is exacerbated. It's a vicious circle. What are the possible consequences? According to the works of researchers Carlos Nobre and Thomas Lovejoy, quoted in a CNN article from 2020, if 20 to 25% of the Amazon disappeared, that would be enough for the entire ecosystem to collapse. The concern is that the rainforest will become unable to survive as an equatorial forest, and may transform into another type of environment, like a kind of savanna. That would mean the extinction of a large part of the immeasurable biodiversity that can be found in the Amazon. It's home to an estimated 2 billion species, and 200 different types of tree. For comparison's sake, a European forest has just 6 tree species on average. It would also multiply the already existing threats to indigenous peoples. There are over 500 in the region. In 2021, 176 indigenous people were murdered in Brazil alone. It would also be a catastrophe at a global level. With less vegetation, the forest would let more water escape from its soils. The entire South American continent receives water flowing from the Amazon, which contributes to agriculture. These raw materials are used to feed livestock all over the world. Furthermore, a poorer ecosystem absorbs less CO2, which accelerates global warming and all the other consequences that brings. Has the destruction of the Amazon worsened in recent years? Yes, and in particular since the election of climate skeptic Jair Bolsonaro as Brazilian president in 2019 Measures protecting the forest and its indigenous peoples dropped left right and centre, with miners, farmers and wood dealers increasingly operating in impunity. Illegal intrusions on indigenous lands tripled between 2018 and 2021, according to advocacy group Indigenous Missionary Council. Deforestation rates had dropped significantly in the 2010s, but during Bolsonaro's mandate, they skyrocketed. Now that former president Lula has been re-elected, all eyes will be on his Amazon policies. During his two previous terms from 2003 to 2010, deforestation was reduced by 70%.
Experts say land titles, restoration and foreign debt for nature swaps would help protect 80% of the Amazon.
There you have it.
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