Forests in wet regions draw moisture from the sea more easily, causing an increase in rainfall, while in drier areas plant transpiration could limit the transportation of moist sea air, and with it precipitation, according to research published in Global Change Biology and coordinated by the Technical University of Munich. The National Research Council's Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate (CNR-Isac) and the University of Florence participated for Italy. The findings contribute to the understanding of the complex interactions between vegetation and rainfall.
The movement of water in the atmosphere does not respect geographical boundaries, so deforestation in one region could trigger a transition to a drier regime in another, the authors note. Since they are among the drivers of the Earth's water cycle, forests in both high and low latitudes are critically important, and their conservation should become a priority in solving the global water crisis.
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