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Yangambi is a town in Isangi territory of Tshopo province, Democratic Republic of the Congo .

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54-550: Yangambi is on the north side of the Congo River and lies on the R408 road which connects it to Kisangani 100 kilometers to the east. This road is unpaved, rarely used in the rainy season and difficult to use at all times of the year. The roads linking Yangambi to Weko and Isangi are also very poor. The river provides an alternative transport route. The town was once served by the small Yangambi Airport . Mean annual rainfall

108-447: A global level, Congo's forests act as the planet's second lung, counterpart to the rapidly dwindling Amazon. They are a huge " carbon sink ", trapping carbon that could otherwise remain carbon dioxide. The Congo Basin holds roughly 8% of the world's forest-based carbon. If these woodlands are deforested, the carbon they trap will be released into the atmosphere. Predictions for future unabated deforestation estimate that by 2050 activities in

162-721: A large unconformity . Sediment started to rapidly accumulate in the basin from the Mesozoic ( Triassic ) up to the present day. Deposits throughout the Jurassic suggest the presence of a freshwater, lacustrine habitat in the basin, and this continued into the Early Cretaceous . By the start of the Late Cretaceous , a connection with the Trans-Saharan seaway led to a significant marine incursion into

216-533: A mean size exceeding 500 km2 in some parts of the Congo Basin. Temperatures in the Congo Basin (usually between 20 and 30 °C) are lower than in the African desert regions to the north ( The Sahara ) and to the south ( Kalahari ). The differences in temperature between the deserts and the Congo Basin is important for driving wind systems known as African easterly jets , which affect climate and weather in

270-467: A new forestry code that requires companies to invest in local development and follow a sustainable, 25-year cycle of rotational logging. When a company is granted a concession from the central government to log in Congo, it must sign an agreement with the local chiefs and hereditary land owners, who give permission for it to extract the trees in return for development packages. In theory, the companies must pay

324-714: A new wood biology laboratory in Yangambi, the first of its kind in Sub-Saharan Africa . Since 2020, Yangambi hosts the Congo Basin 's first Eddy covariance flux tower , installed by Ghent University . [REDACTED] Media related to Yangambi at Wikimedia Commons Congo River The Congo River , formerly also known as the Zaire River , is the second-longest river in Africa , shorter only than

378-463: A proposal to expand generation through improvements and the construction of a new hydroelectric dam . The project would bring the maximum output of the facility to 40,000 megawatts (MW). It is feared that these new hydroelectric dams could lead to the extinction of many of the fish species that are native to the river. Congo Basin The Congo Basin ( French : Bassin du Congo ) is

432-617: A shock from a sudden decrease in the rate of seafloor spreading of the southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge , are the source of the region's famous diamonds . By the Cenozoic , an uplift in the borders of the Cuvette Centrale had blocked any further marine connections. During the Paleogene , high rainfall turned the basin into a series of marshy ponds and swamps. A shift to more arid conditions with seasonal droughts occurred with

486-583: A world-class hub for development, science, and conservation. Recent initiatives include restoration of degraded land, new infrastructure, research on endangered flora and fauna, support to local entrepreneurs, and training of local forest experts. In 2018, the Meise Botanic Garden and INERA renovated Yangambi's herbarium, which has a collection of 150,000 dried plant specimens. In 2019, the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA) launched

540-663: Is 1,835 millimetres (72.2 in). August is the wettest month and February the driest. The skies tend to be partly cloudy even during the drier seasons. 235,000 hectares of forest around Yangambi were declared a Biosphere Reserve in 1976, part of UNESCO ’s Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB). The Yangambi Biosphere Reserve comprises secondary forests with Pycnanthus angolensis and Fagara macrophylla , semi deciduous secondary rain forests, rain forests with Gilbertiodendron dewevrei , climax forests with Brachystegia laurentii and marshland forests. The site

594-673: Is a tributary of the Lualaba River , and Lualaba is the name of the Congo River upstream of Boyoma Falls , extending for 1,800 km (1,100 mi). Measured along with the Lualaba, the main tributary, the Congo River has a total length of 4,370 km (2,720 mi). It is the only major river to cross the Equator twice. The Congo Basin has a total area of about 4,000,000 km (1,500,000 sq mi), or 13% of

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648-655: Is a large depression within the Congo Craton , making it a patch of relatively recent ( Phanerozoic -aged, and mostly Mesozoic & onwards) sedimentary rock within a large, otherwise extremely ancient ( Archean -aged) piece of exposed continental crust. The deformation of the Craton began as early as the late Cambrian or early Ordovician and continued over the Paleozoic , but the deformation over this period led to rapid erosion of much of this Paleozoic rock, creating

702-635: Is home to the okapi , African forest elephant , pygmy hippopotamus , bongo (antelope) , chimpanzee , bonobo and the Congo peafowl . Its apex predator is the Leopard , which are larger than their savannah counterparts due to lack of competition from other large predators. The basin is home to the endangered western lowland gorilla . In 2010, the United Nations Environment Programme warned that gorillas could be extinct from

756-3893: Is in the Ruwenzori Mountains , at an altitude of around 4,340 m (14,240 ft) above sea level. Distribution of the Congo basin area between countries: The most important hydrological stations along the Congo River are: Brazzaville The Congo River discharge at Kinshasa / Brazzaville stations since the start of measurements (1902 to 2021): 5°08′30.4″S 13°59′27.9″E  /  5.141778°S 13.991083°E  / -5.141778; 13.991083 5°02′57.3″S 13°59′28.2″E  /  5.049250°S 13.991167°E  / -5.049250; 13.991167 5°01′49.5″S 14°01′37.2″E  /  5.030417°S 14.027000°E  / -5.030417; 14.027000 5°2′20.6″S 14°02′09.2″E  /  5.039056°S 14.035889°E  / -5.039056; 14.035889 4°56′50.7″S 14°09′21.2″E  /  4.947417°S 14.155889°E  / -4.947417; 14.155889 4°55′38.5″S 14°15′16.5″E  /  4.927361°S 14.254583°E  / -4.927361; 14.254583 4°54′03.3″S 14°24′18.2″E  /  4.900917°S 14.405056°E  / -4.900917; 14.405056 Brazzaville 4°16′47.3″S 15°18′32.8″E  /  4.279806°S 15.309111°E  / -4.279806; 15.309111 4°05′24.4″S 15°30′39.1″E  /  4.090111°S 15.510861°E  / -4.090111; 15.510861 3°52′43.4″S 15°55′11.6″E  /  3.878722°S 15.919889°E  / -3.878722; 15.919889 3°33′18.7″S 16°05′32.2″E  /  3.555194°S 16.092278°E  / -3.555194; 16.092278 3°28′52.5″S 16°07′18.3″E  /  3.481250°S 16.121750°E  / -3.481250; 16.121750 3°11′23.7″S 16°11′09.6″E  /  3.189917°S 16.186000°E  / -3.189917; 16.186000 3°10′36.4″S 16°11′41.5″E  /  3.176778°S 16.194861°E  / -3.176778; 16.194861 3°09′59.7″S 16°10′51.7″E  /  3.166583°S 16.181028°E  / -3.166583; 16.181028 2°48′33.9″S 16°11′40.1″E  /  2.809417°S 16.194472°E  / -2.809417; 16.194472 2°12′22.9″S 16°10′49.0″E  /  2.206361°S 16.180278°E  / -2.206361; 16.180278 2°09′28.5″S 16°12′16.5″E  /  2.157917°S 16.204583°E  / -2.157917; 16.204583 1°52′15.5″S 16°30′43.4″E  /  1.870972°S 16.512056°E  / -1.870972; 16.512056 1°37′55.5″S 16°37′59.4″E  /  1.632083°S 16.633167°E  / -1.632083; 16.633167 1°14′22.2″S 16°47′44.5″E  /  1.239500°S 16.795694°E  / -1.239500; 16.795694 1°03′13.5″S 17°08′58.0″E  /  1.053750°S 17.149444°E  / -1.053750; 17.149444 0°54′39.2″S 17°23′27.1″E  /  0.910889°S 17.390861°E  / -0.910889; 17.390861 0°43′38.5″S 17°33′02.9″E  /  0.727361°S 17.550806°E  / -0.727361; 17.550806 0°41′00.4″S 17°36′43.7″E  /  0.683444°S 17.612139°E  / -0.683444; 17.612139 0°25′58.1″S 17°50′13.3″E  /  0.432806°S 17.837028°E  / -0.432806; 17.837028 0°01′17.4″N 18°13′10.9″E  /  0.021500°N 18.219694°E  / 0.021500; 18.219694 0°30′22.1″N 25°11′03.4″E  /  0.506139°N 25.184278°E  / 0.506139; 25.184278 The main river and tributaries are (sorted in order from

810-414: Is relatively low to the north of the equator (<80 mm per month). In southern hemisphere winter, rainfall is instead lower to the south of the equator (<80 mm per month). The annual rhythm of the wind systems which carry water vapour account for the rainfall seasonality. Much of the rainfall is derived from large Mesoscale convective systems . The systems last over 11 hours on average and have

864-599: Is uncertain, it is likely that extreme rainfall events will become more extreme owing to the increases in water vapour in the atmosphere. Owing to the global climatic importance of the Congo Basin, it has been suggested that, along with the Amazon, severe changes in the rainfall or climate of the Congo Rainforest could act as a ' tipping point ', with widespread impacts on the Earth System. The Congo forest

918-527: Is very important from a biodiversity point of view since it hosts endangered tree species, such as Afrormosia ( Pericopsis elata ). It was also once home to elephants ( Loxodonta africana cyclotis ), but they have now disappeared locally. In 2018, a study confirmed the presence of Common Chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ) in the area. During the colonial era, Yangambi was home to the Institut national pour les études agronomiques du Congo belge (INEAC), one of

972-462: The Amazon rainforest in size, with 300 million hectares compared to the 800 million hectares in the Amazon. Because of its size and diversity the basin's forest is important for mitigating climate change in its role as a carbon sink . However, deforestation and degradation of the ecology by the impacts of climate change may increase stress on the forest ecosystem, in turn making the hydrology of

1026-531: The Atlantic Ocean and an additional 6% of bedload . The river and its tributaries flow through the Congo rainforest , the second largest rainforest area in the world, after the Amazon rainforest in South America. The river also has the second-largest flow in the world, behind the Amazon ; the second-largest drainage basin of any river, behind the Amazon; and is one of the deepest rivers in

1080-582: The Chambeshi , the Uele and Ubangi rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands in the middle reaches. Because of the young age and active uplift of the East African Rift at the headwaters , the river's yearly sediment load is very large, but the drainage basin occupies large areas of low relief throughout much of its area. It is delineated largely by swells including

1134-557: The DRC will release roughly the same amount of carbon dioxide as the United Kingdom has emitted over the last 60 years. A 2013 study by British scientists showed that deforestation in the Congo Basin rainforest was slowing down. In 2017, British scientists discovered that peatlands in the Cuvette Centrale , which cover a total of 145,500 sq km, contain 30 billion tonnes of carbon, or 20 years of U.S. fossil fuel emissions. In 2021,

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1188-568: The Inga dams , about 200 kilometres (120 mi) southwest of Kinshasa. The project was launched in the early 1970s, when the first dam was completed. The plan (as originally conceived) called for the construction of five dams that would have had a total generating capacity of 34,500 megawatts (MW). To date only the Inga I and Inga II dams have been built, generating 1,776 MW. In February 2005, South Africa 's state-owned power company, Eskom , announced

1242-459: The Nile , as well as the third-largest river in the world by discharge volume, following the Amazon and Ganges rivers. It is the world's deepest recorded river, with measured depths of around 220 m (720 ft). The Congo– Lualaba – Luvua – Luapula – Chambeshi River system has an overall length of 4,700 km (2,900 mi), which makes it the world's ninth- longest river . The Chambeshi

1296-578: The Pool Malebo (Stanley Pool). Kinshasa (formerly Léopoldville) and Brazzaville are on opposite sides of the river at the Pool, where the river narrows and falls through a number of cataracts in deep canyons (collectively known as the Livingstone Falls ), running by Matadi and Boma , and into the sea at Muanda . Lower Congo constitutes the "lower" parts of the great river; that is

1350-542: The Sahel and Southern Africa . Future climate projections indicate that the region will get hotter in response to global climate change. There is more uncertainty over how average rainfall in the region will change, with the climate models used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) disagreeing on core elements of the rainfall distribution in the region. While the average rainfall change

1404-517: The Uíge Province in Angola to the confluence with the Congo at Zongo some 80 km (50 mi) downstream from the twin capitals. Because of the vast number of rapids, in particular the Livingstone Falls , this section of the river is not operated continuously by riverboats. The Congo basin covers ten countries and accounts for about 13% of Africa . The highest point in the Congo basin

1458-560: The sedimentary basin of the Congo River . The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa , in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo . It contains some of the largest tropical rainforests in the world and is an important source of water used in agriculture and energy generation. The rainforest in the Congo Basin is the largest rainforest in Africa and second only to

1512-468: The 'Yangambi km 5' (AAA) dessert banana. This variety yields large numbers of small fruit with an excellent taste, is productive even on poor soils and is resistant to black leaf streak disease. There is some evidence that this cultivar may have originated in southern Thailand, introduced to the Kilo-Moto region in northeastern Congo and then brought to Yangambi before World War II . After independence,

1566-473: The Atlantic Ocean. Opportunities for the Congo River and its tributaries to generate hydropower are therefore enormous. Scientists have calculated that the entire Congo Basin accounts for 13 percent of global hydropower potential. This would provide sufficient power for all of Sub-Saharan Africa 's electricity needs. Currently, there are about 40 hydropower plants in the Congo Basin. The largest are

1620-522: The Bie, Mayumbe, Adamlia, Nil-Congo , East African, and Zambian Swells. The basin ends where the river empties into the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean. The basin is a total of 3.7 million square kilometers and is home to some of the largest undisturbed stands of tropical rainforest on the planet, in addition to large wetlands. Countries wholly or partially in the Congo region: The first inhabitants of

1674-466: The Congo Basin area were believed to be pygmies , and at that time, the dense forests and wet climate kept the population of the region low, with the prevention of hunter-gatherer society, whose remnants of their culture survive to the present day. Eventually Bantu peoples migrated there and founded the Kingdom of Kongo . Belgium , France , and Portugal later established colonial control over

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1728-496: The Congo Basin. The Congo Basin is a globally important climatic region with annual rainfall of between 1500 and 2000 mm. It is one of three hotspots of deep convection ( thunderstorms ) in the tropics, the other two being over the Maritime continent and the Amazon . These three regions together drive the climate circulation of the tropics and beyond. The Congo Basin has the highest lightning strike frequency of anywhere on

1782-646: The Congo below Boyoma Falls . The Chambeshi River in Zambia is generally taken as the source of the Congo in line with the accepted practice worldwide of using the longest tributary, as with the Nile River. The Congo flows generally toward the northwest from Kisangani just below the Boyoma Falls, then gradually bends southwestward, passing by Mbandaka , joining with the Ubangi River and running into

1836-683: The INEAC became the Institute National pour l'Etude et la Recherche Agronomiques (INERA), a Congolese institution. However, decades of conflict and political instability led to a progressive decline of Yangambi's research station. Since 2017, with funding from the European Union , the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and several international and Congolese partners are conducting efforts to make of Yangambi's landscape

1890-538: The basin (evidence of an earlier, Late Jurassic marine intrusion is disputed), causing it to serve as a connection between the southern Atlantic Ocean and the Tethys Ocean . Many of the formations deposited by these freshwater and marine habitats are rich in pollen, invertebrate, and vertebrate (primarily fish) fossils . Kimberlite pipes that are thought to have formed during the Cretaceous, possibly due to

1944-635: The basin more variable. A 2012 study found that the variability in precipitation caused by climate change will negatively affect economic activity in the basin. Eight sites of the Congo Basin are inscribed on the World Heritage List , five being also on the list of World Heritage in Danger (all five located in Democratic Republic of the Congo ). Fourteen percent of the humid forest is designated as protected. The Congo Basin

1998-589: The case, there could be a financial incentive for protecting forests. L’Île Mbiye, an island in the Lualaba River in Kisangani , is part of a project about forest ecosystem conservation, conducted by Stellenbosch University . Democratic Republic of the Congo is also looking to expand the area of forest under protection, for which it hopes to secure compensation through emerging markets for forest carbon. The main Congolese environmental organization working to save

2052-477: The deforestation rate of the Congolese rainforest increased by 5%. The Global Forest Atlas estimated that the logging industry covers from 44 to 66 million hectares of forest. A study published in 2019 in Nature Sustainability showed that 54,000 miles of roads for forest concessions were built between 2003 and 2018, reaching a total of 143,500 miles. A moratorium on logging in the Congo forest

2106-464: The entire African landmass. The name Congo/Kongo originates from the Kingdom of Kongo once located on the southern bank of the river. The kingdom in turn was named after the indigenous Bantu Kongo people , known in the 17th century as "Esikongo". South of the Kingdom of Kongo proper lay the similarly named Kakongo kingdom, mentioned in 1535. Abraham Ortelius labelled "Manicongo" as the city at

2160-582: The entire region by the late 19th century. The General Act of the Berlin Conference of 1885 gave a precise definition to the "conventional basin" of the Congo, which included the entire actual basin plus some other areas. The General Act bound its signatories to neutrality within the conventional basin, but this was not respected during the First World War . The World Resources Institute estimated that 80 million people live in and around

2214-551: The government nearly $ 18 million rent per year for these concessions, of which 40% should be returned to provincial governments for investment in social development of the local population in the logged areas. In its current form, the Kyoto Protocol does not reward so-called "avoided deforestation"—initiatives that protect forest from being cut down. But many climate scientists and policymakers hope that negotiations for Kyoto's successor will include such measures. If this were

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2268-412: The greater Congo Basin in a matter of 15 years. The Congo Basin is the largest forest in Africa. More than 10,000 plant species can be found in and around the forest. The humid forests cover 1.6 million km². The Congo Basin is an important source of African teak , used for building furniture and flooring. An estimated 40 million people depend on these woodlands, surviving on traditional livelihoods. At

2322-416: The lower night temperatures in the continental interior, which have a mean minimum at Yangambi of around 20 °C (68 °F). The center developed a number of varieties of soy beans for use in different parts of the country. Early-maturing varieties yielded over 1,200 kg/ha of soybeans. Field trials showed that inoculation could increase yields by 80% to 300%. In the 1950s INEAC researchers discovered

2376-611: The mouth heading upstream): Lower Congo (river mouth to Kinshasa ) Downstream of Kinshasa, from the river mouth at Banana , there are a few major tributaries. Middle Congo ( Kinshasa to the Boyoma Falls ) Upper Congo ( Lualaba ; upstream from the Boyoma Falls ) Although the Livingstone Falls prevent access from the sea, nearly the entire Congo above them is readily navigable in sections, especially between Kinshasa and Kisangani. Large river steamers worked

2430-512: The mouth of the river in his world map of 1564. The tribal names in Kongo possibly derive from a word for a public gathering or tribal assembly. The modern name of the Kongo people or Bakongo was introduced in the early 20th century. The name Zaire is from a Portuguese adaptation of a Kikongo word, nzere ("river"), a truncation of nzadi o nzere ("river swallowing rivers"). The river

2484-548: The planet. The high rainfall supports the second largest rainforest on Earth, which is a globally significant carbon sink and an important component of the global carbon cycle . Averaged across the whole basin, there are two major rainfall seasons in March to May and September to November. In both hemispheres the rainfall maximises in September to November, at above 210 mm per month. In northern hemisphere winter, rainfall

2538-457: The river until quite recently. The Congo River still is a lifeline in a land with few roads or railways. Railways now bypass the three major falls, and much of the trade of Central Africa passes along the river, including copper , palm oil (as kernels), sugar , coffee , and cotton . The Congo River is the most powerful river in Africa. During the rainy season over 50,000 cubic metres (1,800,000 cu ft) of water per second flows into

2592-592: The section of the river from the river mouth at the Atlantic coast to the twin capitals of Brazzaville and Kinshasa. In this section of the river, there are two significant tributaries, both on the left or south side. The Kwilu River originates in the hills near the Angolan border and enters the Congo some 100 km upstream from Matadi . The other is the Inkisi River , that flows in a northerly direction from

2646-667: The start of the Neogene . Later in the Neogene, a sudden shift to fluvial deposits suggests a dramatic return to wetter conditions. The following sedimentary geological formations have been deposited in the basin: Congo is a traditional name for the equatorial Middle Africa that lies between the Gulf of Guinea and the African Great Lakes . The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from

2700-508: The world's most important tropical agriculture and forestry research centers. The INEAC experimental fields and laboratories were built along a road parallel to the north bank of the Congo river, and along a road stretching northward from the river for about 25 kilometres (16 mi). In the 1930s researchers at INEAC found the relationship between the tenera , dura and pisifera oil palms. Oil palms have relatively low yield around Yangambi compared to coastal regions. This appears to be due to

2754-432: The world, at depths greater than 220 m (720 ft). Because its drainage basin includes areas both north and south of the Equator , its flow is stable, as there is always at least one part of the river experiencing a rainy season . The sources of the Congo are in the highlands and mountains of the East African Rift , as well as Lake Tanganyika and Lake Mweru , which feed the Lualaba River , which then becomes

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2808-589: Was agreed between the World Bank and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in May 2002. The World Bank agreed to provide $ 90 million of development aid to Democratic Republic of the Congo with the provision that the government did not issue any new concessions granting logging companies rights to exploit the forest. The deal also prohibited the renewal of existing concessions. The government has written

2862-517: Was known as Zaire during the 16th and 17th centuries; Congo seems to have replaced Zaire gradually in English usage during the 18th century, and Congo is the preferred English name in 19th-century literature, although references to Zahir or Zaire as the name used by the inhabitants remained common. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo are named after it, as

2916-615: Was the previous Republic of the Congo which had gained independence in 1960 from the Belgian Congo . The Republic of Zaire during 1971–1997 was also named after the river's name in French and Portuguese . The Congo's drainage basin covers 4,014,500 km (1,550,000 sq mi), an area nearly equal to that of the European Union . The Congo's discharge at its mouth ranges from 23,000 to 75,000 m /s (810,000 to 2,650,000 cu ft/s), with an average of 41,000 m /s (1,400,000 cu ft/s). The river transports annually 86 million tonnes of suspended sediment to

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