Washington: Climate change combined with human activity caused the disappearance of tropical rainforests in central Africa 3,000 years ago, a study has found.
According to the Prensa Latina news agency, an analysis of marine sediment of the Congo river shows that at that time there was the influence of a strong chemical erosion.
Experts from the French Research Institute for Marine Exploration (IFREMER) said this deterioration occurred with the arrival of tribal communities that brought agricultural and cast iron technologies to the region that is now known as Cameroon and Nigeria.
Increased exploitation of the earth along with climate change contributed to the degradation process, the researchers said.
IANS
First Published: Sunday, February 12, 2012, 13:17