CIFOR–ICRAF publishes over 750 publications every year on agroforestry, forests and climate change, landscape restoration, rights, forest policy and much more – in multiple languages.

CIFOR–ICRAF addresses local challenges and opportunities while providing solutions to global problems for forests, landscapes, people and the planet.

We deliver actionable evidence and solutions to transform how land is used and how food is produced: conserving and restoring ecosystems, responding to the global climate, malnutrition, biodiversity and desertification crises. In short, improving people’s lives.

Deforestation and its potential disruption of the weather patterns of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Insights from the Kahuzi-Biega National Park landscape

Export citation

Key messages

  • Regions surrounding the Kahuzi-Biega National Park (KBNP) and other areas of South Kivu Province in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been losing their natural forests for decades.
  • There is a positive correlation between deforestation and CO2 emissions. Our research shows that deforestation increases temperature and negatively impacts rainfall, although not significantly.
  • Deforestation and its effects on the local climate are very likely to disrupt local agricultural practices and severely impact the unique biological diversity of the region.
  • Understanding the important role of forests in regulating climate not only helps to develop appropriate climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies but also to attain better biodiversity conservation and food security, and to go beyond just carbon sequestration services.

Download:

DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17528/cifor/008824
Altmetric score:
Dimensions Citation Count:

    Publication year

    2023

    Authors

    Amani, C.; Pham, T.T.

    Language

    English

    Keywords

    deforestation, carbon dioxide, emissions, climate change, adaptation, mitigation, weather

    Geographic

    Democratic Republic of the Congo

Related publications