Undisturbed Amazonian tropical rain forest
(photo credit: Don Deering)
The first stage of deforestation during preparation for industrial agriculture. All vegetation
Is killed but large amounts of unburned biomass still remains (photo credit: D. Morton)
In the next stage of clearing for industrial agriculture the remaining biomass is accumulated into piles and burned again (photo credit: D. Morton)
The final result is large tracts of previously forested land prepared for industrial agriculture. The carbon once locked in the forest biomass has been released into
the atmosphere. Note the deforestation fire visible in the distance (photo credit: G. van der Werf)
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