More than one-tenth of trees and plants from the Amazon rainforest have been removed since the 1960s by humans, according to a recent study.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh found that this widespread removal of trees has contributed to a rise in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, increasing the potential impact of climate change. According to the study, deforestation of the Amazon rainforest has accounted for 1.5 percent of the increase in carbon dioxide levels seen since the mid-nineteenth century.
"Our study indicates that the impact of large-scale deforestation on the Amazon carbon balance has been partially offset by ongoing regrowth of vegetation, despite sustained human activity. Overall, our results provide a baseline to better understand the global carbon cycle," Dr. Jean-François Exbrayat, who led the research, said in a statement.
If this deforestation had not taken place, the rainforest would store 12 percent more carbon it its vegetation, and cover a much larger area, researchers added.
For the study, researchers made maps to show what size the Amazon would be today if humans had not deforested large areas of it.
High-resolution satellite images have been available only since 2000. The team used this technology to make virtual models to work out how the rainforest changed in earlier decades. Researchers used these to study how the loss of trees reduced the rainforest's ability to store carbon.
According to the team, the destruction of large areas of the Amazon also impacts on the biodiversity of the rainforest and could lead to the loss of many animal and plant species.
The findings are published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
