The local and global effects of Southeast Asian deforestation

Using a global climate model (GCM), we simulate the effects of deforestation of Southeast Asia, looking at the local and remote precipitation effects of such a land-use change. We observe a strong local effect, with a reduction in Asian precipitation that persists throughout the year. The effect of this tropical rainforest deforestation extends throughout the Tropics, but it is weaker than that seen earlier in response to Amazonian and African deforestation. The remote effect is caused by the Asian geopotential changes being spread beyond the deforested area by the large-scale winds. The magnitude of the impact is proportional to the percentage of deforestation.