The Cerrado, the most biodiverse savanna in the world, is enduring its worst drought in at least seven centuries. A new study links the severe drought to rising temperatures as our world warms from increased heat-trapping gases.
What's happening?
The Cerrado savanna in eastern Brazil is home to 5% of the world's plants and animals. As our world warms, it doesn't warm uniformly, and scientists estimate the rise in temperature in this part of Brazil has exceeded the planet's average warming of 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit by 1.8 degrees.
An analysis of temperature, rainfall, and other records in ancient caves in the region helped scientists reconstruct weather patterns through the past several centuries. They concluded that the drought is something the Cerrado hasn't experienced in a very long time.
"The message is that there is no parallel with the drought that's occurring now. It's important to note that our study identified a rise in temperatures starting in the 1970s. This rise hasn't yet reached its peak. The phenomenon is expected to become even worse," said Francisco William da Cruz Junior, a co-author of the study published in Nature Communications, per SciTechDaily.
He added, "This proved that the Cerrado is drier than it was and that the dry weather is associated with the disruption to the hydrological cycle caused by the rise in temperature due to human activity, especially greenhouse gas emissions."
Why is a drought in the Cerrado important?
The study by the University of São Paulo suggests that a severe long-term drought in eastern South America will be made worse in the future because of the apparent connection to an increase in emissions of heat-trapping gases.
Scientists say our warming world is supercharging the hydrological cycle. This means more rainfall and flooding in one part of the water cycle. In regions of the world such as the Cerrado, Earth's extra heat evaporates water and deepens drought conditions. Climate change is making droughts more frequent, intense, and longer-lasting.
What's being done about the drought?
The World Wildlife Fund's mission is "to conserve nature and reduce the most pressing threats to the diversity of life on Earth." The WWF urges large agricultural companies to "end all deforestation and conversion, including of savanna and grasslands like the Cerrado that capture carbon in their deep roots." They also want these companies to make their commodities traceable and transparent.
The WWF estimates that nearly a third of our planet's heat-trapping gas emissions come from our global food system. We can help by eating cleaner, cheaper food. Shopping smarter at the grocery store and changing how we cook our food can also make a difference.
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