Desertification by slash and burn in Africa (CCD-Coalition / OLYecology)

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CCD Coalition: 199 – Earth’s Tree News

AFRICA

Scientists are using a biomass map in Africa to help manage and preserve natural resources. It shows how much live vegetation, or biomass, covers a specific area of land. The tropical zones of Africa are home to dense and humid forests. They contain a diverse spread of life and absorb and store carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. Using biomass maps, made using satellites, scientists can infer how much carbon is contained in the forest and how much could be released into the atmosphere by deforestation. In Africa, it’s common practice for people to clear a patchwork of land to farm and feed their families. They cut the trees down with machetes and set fire to the area. Then they plant in the ashes, which help fertilize the crops. This is called slash and burn.

Nadine Laporte: When they burn the biomass, you have CO2 which is emitted in the atmosphere, and so it increases CO2 and changes the climate. It gets warmer and warmer. That’s Nadine Laporte, the director of the Africa Program at the Woods Hole Research Center in Massachusetts. She developed the new biomass maps for Africa. She said it’s more difficult to prevent slash and burn by families in Africa than deforestation that’s driven by industry in other countries.

Go to :

http://www.earthsky.org/radioshows/51345/map-keeps-track-of-africas-forests-and-carbon