Monday, July 17, 2006

Drought Threatens Amazon Basin

Drought Threatens Amazon Basin: "Brazil's environment minister, Marina Da Silva, said the drought was linked to record sea temperatures in the south-west Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico that had also contributed to last year's record Atlantic hurricane season.

But the destruction of the rainforest by illegal loggers has also been named as a cause, as rivers become choked with silt swept from the denuded land.

Ecologist Carlos Rittl said the continued removal of trees was a crucial factor in the drying of a region that has already lost 17% of its forest cover. 'The science shows that 50% of the rain comes from the trees recycling the water through evaporation, which creates more rain. If you lose the trees you lose the rainfall. It cannot continue like this,' he said."

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