Impacts of deforestation on global warming vary with latitude
By Summit Voice
SUMMIT COUNTY — New research on the relationship between forest cover and surface temperatures suggest that deforestation in northern latitudes may have a regional cooling effect, but closer to the equator, cleared areas likely result in a net warming.
In a nutshell, the impacts of deforestation on global warming vary with latitude, which may require new climate-monitoring strategies, The study by a team of 20 researchers from around the world is being published in the Nov. 17 issue of the journal Nature.
That’s because temperature readings are generally taken in grassy fields with biophysical properties of cleared land, so those readings “do not accurately represent the state of climate for 30 percent of the terrestrial surface covered by forests,” according to the study. (more…)
Filed under: climate and weather, forests, global warming | Tagged: deforestation, Environment, forests, global warming, Summit County News, United States Forest Service, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies | 1 Comment »


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