Satellite observations have long been used to detect deforestation, and a new study shows that giving Indigenous groups greater access to these data can improve response times and reduce tree cover loss.
deforestation
Posted inNews
Amazon Forests Are Turning into Savannas
Floodplain forests have low resilience to repeated exposure to wildfires. As climate change increases the instances of fires, forests may transform to less productive grassland ecosystems.
Posted inNews
Urbanization, Agriculture, and Mining Threaten Brazilian Rivers
Harder to analyze and quantify, diffuse pollution is often overlooked when it comes to water quality assessments.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Rising Seas and Agriculture Created Wetlands Along the U.S. East Coast
Most of the tidal marshes along the eastern coast of the United States formed within the past 6,000 years due to a combination of slowly rising seas and European colonization.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Forest Degradation Affects Carbon and Water Cycles
Forest degradation may be as widespread as deforestation in the Amazon, but its impact on energy, carbon, and water fluxes is less well understood.
Posted inNews
A Dirty Truth: Humans Began Accelerating Soil Erosion 4,000 Years Ago
Recent research combining analysis of carbon dating, sediment accumulation rates, and pollen records from 632 lake beds worldwide finds deforestation tied to increased soil erosion.
Posted inNews
Deforestation Could Exacerbate Drought in the Amazon
Researchers use high-resolution satellite images to parse the effects of land use changes on the energy balance between the rain forest and the atmosphere.
Posted inNews
Ousted Head of Science Agency Criticizes Brazil’s Denial of Deforestation Data
Ricardo Galvão was fired from the institute that monitors deforestation in the Amazon. Now he and other scientists are speaking out against attacks on science.
Posted inNews
Global Tree Cover Loss Continues but Is Down from Peak Highs
New data show that an area of tropical tree forest cover the size of Nicaragua was lost in 2018.
Posted inOpinions
Will the Desert Darken Your Door?
Wildfires are becoming more common as climate changes. So too are the arid landscapes that spread in their wake.