The process of repeated use of moisture also influences the atmospheric cycle, which plays a key role in regulating temperature in the Amazon. The effects of this become more evident in the majority of areas where trees have been harvested, causing delays in the onset of the rainy season for 76 days since 1980 in regions where more than 80% of forests have been cleared.
Precipitation levels in these same regions dropped by 40% during the soybean planting season and by 23% during the corn planting season from 1999 to 2019. However, a study published in October of last year by the federal university of Minas-Jerais in Brazil and the Norwegian Rainforest Fund shows losses incurred by farmers due to deforestation.
Research demonstrates that the continuation of deforestation and complete removal of forest in certain areas of Brazilian Amazon leads to a decrease in yields, which results in overall economic losses amounting to around billions of dollars between 2006 and 2019.
For a long time, Brazilian farmers have rejected claims that yield reductions are caused by climate change or deforestation. Krøg, a forest expert in Norway, notes that "these results indicate a risk, which the deforestation represents to global biodiversity safety."
The change in drought conditions is becoming increasingly difficult, as agricultural companies in Brazil refer to such reports and the authors of them critically and with suspicion, often calling them "agricultural panic."
Planting more trees can help mitigate changes in precipitation. After accounting for production costs, net profit from soy decreased by 10% over the period, while income from corn decreased by 20%.