It seems intuitive that large forests exist in areas where there is a lot of rainfall. But what if the converse were true. What if forests themselves were a significant factor in causing rainfall?
That was the hypothesis first put forward by scientists Anastassia Makarieva and Victor Gorshkov in a 2006 paper published in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences. A follow-up study performed by the pair and three other scientists lends credence to the controversial theory they have developed.
If true, the atmospheric model the scientists have developed “could revolutionize the way we understand local climates, and their vulnerability, with many major implications,” according to the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), which participated in the new study.
“It suggests, for instance, that by strategically replanting forests we could attract rainfall into desert and arid regions like the African Sahel, where drought has for years ravaged crops and induced famine. Likewise, significant forest loss could transform lush tropical regions into arid landscapes.” Read More→
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On Monday, scientists from the 
GlobalWarmingisReal contributor Anders Hellum-Alexander wraps-up the climate and environmental news headlines for the past week:
