Amazon study region released more carbon than it absorbed on average

What you need to know

• The analysis used 1,017 vertical profiles of atmospheric carbon collected by aircraft at four sites between 2010 and 2024. The measurements provide a long-term view of carbon exchange, but the sampling was not spread across every part of the basin. 12
• The estimated average net release was 0.32 ± 0.08 petagrams of carbon per year. Annual estimates varied substantially, from a net uptake of 0.12 petagrams to a release of 0.75 petagrams, so the average conceals considerable year-to-year change. 12
• Estimated fire emissions were 0.40 ± 0.07 petagrams of carbon per year, making fires the largest measured source in the study. The result underlines the importance of burning to the reported carbon balance. 12
• The study compared years grouped by climate stress and human activity. Emissions were higher in years with substantial deforestation and burning even without severe climate stress; drought and heat amplified emissions in other years. The authors did not find a significant difference between the two higher-emission groups. 123
• The researchers identify 2024 as the year with the highest annual emissions in their time series. This is a finding for the study's sampled region and period, rather than evidence that every location experienced the same trend. 13

Why this matters

The findings connect the forest's carbon balance to pressures that include fire, deforestation and degradation, while also showing how climate stress can intensify emissions. Understanding their combined effects is important for assessing changes in the region's role in carbon exchange. 123

What happens next

The study raises questions about how representative its four sampling regions are of the wider Amazon and how much year-to-year change comes from fires versus changes in forest uptake. Continued measurement and assessment of whether efforts to reduce deforestation, degradation and burning change the carbon balance remain important unresolved issues. 12

What we know

• The study's estimate for carbon exchange excluding fires was −0.08 ± 0.12 petagrams per year, close to neutral within the reported uncertainty. 12
• The central net-release estimate is a 15-year average. The study reports a wide range in annual carbon balance, including years with net uptake as well as years with substantial release. 12
• The researchers attribute emissions to interacting pressures, including human activity and climate stress, rather than to drought alone. 123

What we don't know

• How well the four aircraft-profile regions represent carbon exchange across the entire Amazon basin remains an open question. 12
• The reporting does not resolve how much of the year-to-year variation reflects fire emissions compared with changes in forest uptake. 12
• It is not yet known whether policies to reduce deforestation, degradation and burning will produce measurable improvements in the region's carbon balance. 12

Read the reporting

This WildNews briefing synthesises and summarises reporting from the sources below. WildNews did not produce the original reporting. Learn more about how we use AI