“Amazônia” represents the Amazon forests turning into charred Savannas by
deforestation. This dystopic future could emerge from the effects of climate change,
where the resilience of the rainforest to wildfires declines, causing the Amazon River to
die by frequent droughts, leaving only its dried and burnt course.
The Amazon is the world’s largest river basin, covering the vast majority of Brazil’s
northern region and spilling over into eight other South American countries. The largest
waterway in this system is the eponymous Amazon River, the largest in the world and
the result of the confluence of the Negro and Solimões Rivers — all three of which cut
through the vast Brazilian state of Amazonas.
The Amazon rainforest has existed for over 55 million years. It is one of the most
biologically complex regions globally, home to one-tenth of all living plant and animal
species. The entire Amazon basin includes eight South American countries, but Brazil
holds about two-thirds of it.
Deforestation has diminished the clouds generated by the Amazon, which dump
precipitation across much of South America. In central-western Brazil, the destruction
has been causing rainfall shortages for nearly a decade.
As droughts become more frequent and severe, seasonal rains become less dependable,
and root mats become a fire hazard. Dry weather raises the risk of intense fires in Brazil’s
Amazon rainforest and Pantanal wetlands, scientists say, warning that drought could
fuel the destruction of biomes critical to curbing climate change.