Local rainfall trends and their perception by the Amazonian communities.
Abstract
Climate change in the Amazon region is the subject of many studies not only
due to its stance as an emblematic ecosystem but also as a region where changes have been
dramatic for over 30 years, mainly due to deforestation. We investigate how people settled
in the Amazon perceive environmental changes by comparing these perceptions with
satellite rainfall data for 12 sites representing the community diversity in the region. Perceptions
are varied and agreement with physical, measured data is not always good. However,
the arc of deforestation, where the downward trend of rainfall is more strongly observed,
also appears as the region where the populations have the highest perception of rainfall
change.