Climate change research in dry environments of South America: evolution, current state, and future directions

Purpose

Drylands occupy 41% of the Earth's surface and 31% of South America. In these environments, anthropogenic climate changes may contribute to the intensification of droughts and increase the susceptibility of lands to desertification. In this study, the evolution, current topics, and the research trends in climate change in four dry environments in South America (Caatinga, Patagonia, Gran Chaco, and the Atacama Desert) were analyzed.

Methods

The database was obtained from the Core Collection of Web of Science. A total of 1,386 scientific papers (1993–2022) were analyzed.

Results

Patagonia accounted for 37.4% of research on climate change in the four studied environments, while the Gran Chaco accounted for only 6.9%. Overall, the research trends indicate the need for the understanding in the increasing severity of drought in the Caatinga and the intensification of fire frequency in the Gran Chaco on soil properties, animals, and plants. The implementation of more sustainable animal production systems, aiming at soil conservation and reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions should be a priority in Patagonia. In Atacama Desert, the relationship between climate change and soil microbiome, as well as plant-microorganism interactions under hyper-arid conditions, represent important research trends in this ecosystem. Across all biomes, quantification of GHG emissions, the development of strategies to promote C sequestration by biomass and in soils and studies to understand the effects of climate change on people's lives have been scarce and urgently need implementation.

Conclusion

There is an urgent need to implement public policies aimed at mitigating and adapting to climate change in the dry climate environments of South America with emphasis on the Gran Chaco, where climate-environmental research is limited, and ecosystem degradation is pronounced.