Is the Amazon river losing water?

Extreme drought drives Amazon River port to lowest level on record. Amid extreme drought across South America exacerbated by climate-change related heat extremes and El Niño, major tributaries of the Amazon River are reporting record-low water levels.



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Tackling these challenges necessitates coordinated action on local, national, and global levels. “We need immediate support. The Amazon river is drying up in the worst possible way, and all that's left for our Indigenous brothers to drink is dirty water,” says Hernández.

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The changing nature of the Amazon Over time, global climate change and more deforestation will likely lead to increased temperatures and changing rain patterns in the Amazon, which will undoubtedly affect the region's forests, water availability, biodiversity, agriculture, and human health.

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Threats to the Amazon
  • Unchecked Agricultural Expansion. Uncurbed expansion of ranching and unsustainable farming practices clear forests and leaves areas more prone to fires that can quickly become uncontrolled.
  • Illegal and Unmitigated Gold Mining. ...
  • Illegal Logging.


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While deforestation has decreased significantly in the Amazon this year, the forest is still burning at an alarming rate.

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The Basin covers more than 6,100,000 km2, or 44% of the land area of the South American continent, extending into Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.

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In the waters The biggest water-dwelling mammal, and probably the biggest mammal in the Amazon altogether, is the Amazonian Manatee. A distant relative of the elephant, the Amazonian Manatee can grow up to 2.8m and weigh up to 540kg, with the female usually larger than the male of the species.

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Fish, a vital part of life in the Amazon Fishing is the main source of income and food for riverside communities in the Amazon River Basin. In Brazil, the region's potential is as high as 1 million tons per year, the equivalent of half of the total fish production from the country's rivers and lakes.

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INPE's deforestation alert system, known as DETER, indicates that forest clearing in Brazil's section of the Amazon totaled 563 square kilometers in August 2023. This is a 66% decline — equating to nearly 1,100 square kilometers — compared to the same month the previous year.

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The Amazon region itself—the seven million square kilometer basin stretching over nine Brazilian states and eight other sovereign countries—would become virtually uninhabitable, according to the model. Rainfall would be 25 percent lower and temperatures up to 4.5°C hotter.

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