Climate Change Has Already Affected South America
2022-03-05
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1Scientists have long warned that extreme weather would cause major disasters in the future.
2But in South America, that future is already here.
3In the past month, there have been deadly landslides in Brazil, wildfires in Argentine wetlands and flooding in the Amazon.
4In just three hours on February 15, the Brazilian city of Petropolis received over 25 centimeters of rainfall.
5That is the most recorded in a single day since officials began keeping records in 1932.
6The resulting landslides killed more than 100 people and left nearly 1,000 others homeless.
7A recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) found that global warming is changing the strength and frequency of extreme weather events.
8These events have also become more difficult to predict, the report said, leading to additional damage.
9An historic drought of the Paraná River dried out much of Argentina's Ibera Wetlands.
10Its waters are at the lowest level since 1944.
11The area has had many severe wildfires in the last two months.
12Recently, 70 percent of the city of Jordão in Brazil's Amazon rainforest was underwater because of flooding from two rivers.
13The floods have severely affected the lives of thousands of people in the area, including 32 native Brazilian communities.
14The entire Amazon rainforest stores between 150 and 200 billion tonnes of carbon in its plant life and soil, says Carlos Nobre.
15He is a Brazilian climate scientist who has studied the Amazon for more than 30 years.
16Nobre told The Associated Press, "If you lose the forest, this carbon dioxide... goes into the atmosphere. It is very important to maintain the forest."
17But most governments across the area have failed to consider the IPCC's warnings and stop the destruction.
18Many South American leaders have not spoken about illegal logging and mining activities in at-risk areas.
19In Colombia, a recent increase in forest fires led more than 150 international researchers and activists to send a letter urging the government to do more to prevent them.
20Local lawyers and police officials have said the area is more and more dependent on activists for preservation.
21Alejandra Boloqui supervises a private protected land area in Argentina's Ibera Wetlands.
22She has been helping firefighters fight against wildfires there.
23Recently, she recorded 12 alligators fleeing the fires and walking down a dirt road in search of water.
24"When I started filming them, I cried. I felt they were saying to me: 'I've been left without a home, I'm leaving,'" Boloqui told the AP.
25"It got my attention seeing so many alligators moving together during the day. ...They are very slow reptiles who move at night to avoid heat."
26The alligators and many other animals found shelter in a nearby body of water that had dried up due to lack of rain.
27It has since been refilled using water pumps powered by the sun.
28Local officials say the fires started with the burning of farmland for raising cows.
29That practice has been banned since December.
30IPCC experts say in the report that droughts make it easier for fires to spread quickly.
31Last year, Brazil's south and southeast areas faced their worst droughts in 90 years.
32In Manaus, the largest city in the Amazon, rivers rose to levels not seen in over 100 years of record-keeping.
33Flooding of streets and houses affected about 450,000 people in the area.
34The IPCC report says changes in the timing and strength of rainfall, along with extreme temperatures, are affecting agricultural production across Central and South America.
35I'm Jonathan Evans.
1Scientists have long warned that extreme weather would cause major disasters in the future. But in South America, that future is already here. 2In the past month, there have been deadly landslides in Brazil, wildfires in Argentine wetlands and flooding in the Amazon. 3In just three hours on February 15, the Brazilian city of Petropolis received over 25 centimeters of rainfall. That is the most recorded in a single day since officials began keeping records in 1932. The resulting landslides killed more than 100 people and left nearly 1,000 others homeless. 4A recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) found that global warming is changing the strength and frequency of extreme weather events. These events have also become more difficult to predict, the report said, leading to additional damage. 5An historic drought of the Paraná River dried out much of Argentina's Ibera Wetlands. Its waters are at the lowest level since 1944. The area has had many severe wildfires in the last two months. 6Recently, 70 percent of the city of Jordão in Brazil's Amazon rainforest was underwater because of flooding from two rivers. The floods have severely affected the lives of thousands of people in the area, including 32 native Brazilian communities. 7The entire Amazon rainforest stores between 150 and 200 billion tonnes of carbon in its plant life and soil, says Carlos Nobre. He is a Brazilian climate scientist who has studied the Amazon for more than 30 years. 8Nobre told The Associated Press, "If you lose the forest, this carbon dioxide... goes into the atmosphere. It is very important to maintain the forest." 9But most governments across the area have failed to consider the IPCC's warnings and stop the destruction. Many South American leaders have not spoken about illegal logging and mining activities in at-risk areas. 10In Colombia, a recent increase in forest fires led more than 150 international researchers and activists to send a letter urging the government to do more to prevent them. Local lawyers and police officials have said the area is more and more dependent on activists for preservation. 11Alejandra Boloqui supervises a private protected land area in Argentina's Ibera Wetlands. She has been helping firefighters fight against wildfires there. Recently, she recorded 12 alligators fleeing the fires and walking down a dirt road in search of water. 12"When I started filming them, I cried. I felt they were saying to me: 'I've been left without a home, I'm leaving,'" Boloqui told the AP. "It got my attention seeing so many alligators moving together during the day. ...They are very slow reptiles who move at night to avoid heat." 13The alligators and many other animals found shelter in a nearby body of water that had dried up due to lack of rain. It has since been refilled using water pumps powered by the sun. 14Local officials say the fires started with the burning of farmland for raising cows. That practice has been banned since December. IPCC experts say in the report that droughts make it easier for fires to spread quickly. 15Last year, Brazil's south and southeast areas faced their worst droughts in 90 years. In Manaus, the largest city in the Amazon, rivers rose to levels not seen in over 100 years of record-keeping. Flooding of streets and houses affected about 450,000 people in the area. 16The IPCC report says changes in the timing and strength of rainfall, along with extreme temperatures, are affecting agricultural production across Central and South America. 17I'm Jonathan Evans. 18Diane Jeantet, Mauricio Savarese and Debora Rey reported on this story for the Associated Press. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. 19Words in This Story 20global - adj. worldwide 21frequency - n. rate of repetition 22drought - n. a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain 23maintain - v. to keep in a particular or desired state 24logging - n. the activity or business of felling trees and cutting and preparing the timber 25preservation - n. the effort of keeping from injury, loss, or decay