Environmental Studies and Forestry

Shifts in regional water availability due to global tree restoration

A. J. H. V. Dijke, M. Herold, et al.

This innovative study, conducted by a team including Anne J. Hoek van Dijke and Martin Herold, delves into the surprising effects of large-scale tree restoration on global water availability. With findings indicating that while some regions could see a 6% boost in water resources, others might face alarming declines up to 38%, this research calls for a reevaluation of tree restoration strategies.

00:00

Playback language: English

Index

Abstract

This study investigates the impact of large-scale tree restoration (900 million hectares) on global water availability. Using an ensemble of Budyko models and the UTrack moisture recycling dataset, the researchers analyze the combined effects of increased evaporation and enhanced precipitation. Results reveal complex patterns, with water availability increasing up to 6% in some regions and decreasing up to 38% in others. The study highlights the need to consider hydrological effects in future tree-restoration strategies, as some water-scarce regions could experience further reductions in water availability.

Publisher

Nature Geoscience

Published On

May 11, 2022

Authors

Anne J. Hoek van Dijke, Martin Herold, Kaniska Mallick, Imme Benedict, Miriam Machwitz, Martin Schlerf, Agnes Pranindita, Jolanda J. E. Theeuwen, Jean-François Bastin, Adriaan J. Teuling

Related Publications

Explore these studies to deepen your understanding of the subject.

Environmental Studies and Forestry

A triple increase in global river basins with water scarcity due to future pollution

M. Wang, B. L. Bodirski, et al.

Environmental Studies and Forestry

Global inequities in population exposure to urban greenspaces increased amidst tree and nontree vegetation cover expansion

S. Leng, R. Sun, et al.

Earth Sciences

Climate change will affect global water availability through compounding changes in seasonal precipitation and evaporation

G. Konapala, A. K. Mishra, et al.

Environmental Studies and Forestry

Substantial decrease in CO2 emissions from Chinese inland waters due to global change

L. Ran, D. E. Butman, et al.

Listen, Learn & Level Up

Over 10,000 hours of research content in 25+ fields, available in 12+ languages.

No more digging through PDFs, just hit play and absorb the world's latest research in your language, on your time.

listen to research audio papers with researchbunny