Research Memo: Amazon rainforests mitigate drought in Rondônia
- Water Production Connections
- Jul 12, 2021
- 2 min read
By Ye Mu and Cassie Sevigny

The Connections between Water and Rural Production project (CAP) investigates whether and which farmers adapt their production systems when they experience changes in rainfall, what adaptations they make, and whether these adaptations reduce income losses expected when drying occurs. Improved understanding of these responses will inform efforts by government agencies and civil society to help farmers adjust to changes in water availability. This research memo explores the impact of moisture from forests, non-forested areas, and the ocean on important agricultural areas in Rondônia, a state in the Brazilian Amazon.
As the largest tropical rainforest in the world, the Amazon forest has an extremely important impact on the regional and global water cycle and ecological balance. Moisture in the atmosphere over the Amazon mainly comes from air from over the Atlantic Ocean and evapotranspiration from rainforests. Evapotranspiration is the process of plants absorbing water from the soil, using it to grow, and releasing it into the air. Some of this water then condenses and returns to the earth in the form of rainfall. In a recent paper by Ye Mu, Trent. W. Biggs, and Fernando De Sales, our team found that the ocean and forested area each provide just under half of Rondônia’s moisture, and non-forest area only contributes about 1-6%.
In the past two decades, the atmosphere above the Amazon rainforest has become drier, leading to increased water demand, and making ecosystems vulnerable to fires and droughts. Amazonian droughts are generally triggered by ocean conditions: Occurrences of El Niño/La Niña (which depend on above or below average ocean temperatures combined with wind patterns) and the abnormal rise of sea level temperatures in the North Atlantic. In studying droughts in the Amazon river basin in 2005, 2010, and 2015, the team found about a 20% decrease in moisture from the ocean, while forest moisture remained the same. This indicates that forested areas are crucial in supplying moisture to Rondônia during droughts.
However, deforestation in the Amazon River Basin in Brazil has increased, which reduces evapotranspiration and atmospheric moisture at the source of the Amazon. Agricultural land for crops and pasture produces less moisture through evapotranspiration than forests, so changes in land use can worsen the effects of reduced water supply from the ocean. The loss of forests due to fire, logging, drought and potential feedbacks may threaten the forest's water sources, increase the risk of reduced rainfall, and therefore affect agricultural productivity and ecosystem functions. These risks may be higher as the climate changes, potentially outweighing the forest’s ability to provide steady moisture even during droughts.
Ye Mu, Trent. W. Biggs, and Fernando De Sales (2021). Forests mitigate drought in an agricultural region of the Brazilian Amazon. Geophysical Research Letters, 48:5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL091380
Need a dependable laundry service near me? Dry Cleaning Junction offers top-quality laundry and dry cleaning with easy pick-up and delivery. Experience convenient, affordable care for your clothes today.
I came across New Assignment Help Australia when I was short on time to submit my business management assignment. Honestly, I didn’t expect much, but they exceeded my expectations. Their writers knew what they were doing and the support team kept me updated the whole time. Halfway through, I could tell that their Assignment Help isn’t some generic service—it felt tailored and personalized to my topic. The formatting, references, and even the tone of writing matched university standards. It felt like someone who truly understood Australian academics was behind it. It’s rare to find services that care this much. I’ve bookmarked their site and will definitely use them again for future tasks. Highly recommend for students needing reliable assistance.
Research work requires professional Phd Experts to achieve good results. In the above research on Amazon rainforest, the research is not extensively conducted. To get your research done properly, hire the PHD experts of assignmenthelp.co.za in South for best dissertation writing assistance.
As this research focuses on exploring the impact of moisture from forests, similar kinds of research work are also carried out by the experts of Australian Assignment Help. If you need assistance with any such research, contact their experts and they are always available for academic assistamce/
En https://e-sports-chile.cl/dota-2/, los fanáticos de Dota 2 encuentran toda la información clave: torneos, equipos destacados y las mejores oportunidades para seguir el competitivo mundo de este icónico esport en Chile.