YANGAMBI
SEPTEMBER 05 TO 07, 2022
SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE
Within the framework of PRECOP27, the DRC in partnership with the Arab Republic of Egypt an international conference was held on Tropical Basin Forests and Climate Change, from 05 to 07 September 2022.
SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE
Contribution of the forests of the Congo Basin and other tropical basins of the planet to the fight against climate change: state of play and perspectives.
Reflection and sharing
It was therefore necessary to bring together scientists specializing in the issues of forests, water resources, climate change and related disciplines to reflect on the contribution of the forests of the Congo Basin to the fight against climate change and, above all, on the effective means of conserving them for this purpose and for the green socio-economic development of the populations of the Congo Basin who, as the primary guardians of these forests and its biodiversity, should be the primary beneficiaries.
However, the scientists' reflections will not be limited to the Congo Basin, but will also extend to the other tropical basins of the planet, in particular the Amazon and Indonesian basins, which provide the same ecosystem services to mankind, and are often faced with similar problems of protection and preservation.
The experts will have to carry out assessments and prospective analyses, because if in the past the Congo Basin was essentially spared from deforestation, it is no longer the case today. In 2001, the total area of primary forest lost to deforestation was more than 6 million hectares. The direct and underlying causes of this deforestation are extreme poverty, energy deficit, and slash-and-burn agriculture.
The continued deforestation and degradation of the Congo Basin forests has several consequences, including :
- Increased global CO2 emissions ;
- The reduction of the sequestration capacity of atmospheric carbon;
- The reduction of the flow of the Congo, Nile and Zambezi rivers, and of certain lakes in the region;
- The drying up of some tributaries of the Congo River;
- The disruption of the hydrological cycle in the Congo Basin;
- The loss of biodiversity and the disappearance of hundreds of endemic flora and fauna species.
Managing, developing and protecting forest resources
FOCUS ON YANGAMBI
This is in Yangambi,
In the province of Tshopo,
That was held the scientific conference from 05 to 07 September 2022.
Symbolic place when we know that it is at this location that the Flux Tower is installed, allowing to quantify the exchanges of greenhouse gases between the atmosphere and the forest. This allowed to better understand the contribution of tropical forests to the mitigation of climate change. This highlights the position of the DRC as the first lung of the planet and in the forefront of scientific research on climate change.