Land surface effects on climate

[1][2][3] Major land surface changes affecting climate include deforestation (especially in tropical areas),[4][5][6][7][8] and destruction of grasslands and xeric woodlands by overgrazing, or lack of grazing.

This is because of the albedo effect (sunlight reflected by bare ground) during the day, and rapid radiation of heat into space at night, due to the lack of vegetation and atmospheric moisture.

[18] Reforestation, conservation grazing, holistic land management, and, in drylands, water harvesting and keyline design, are examples of methods that might help prevent or lessen these drying effects.

[citation needed] A föhn or foehn is a type of dry, warm, down-slope wind that occurs in the lee (downwind side) of a mountain range.

[citation needed] It is a rain shadow wind that results from the subsequent adiabatic warming of air that has dropped most of its moisture on windward slopes (see orographic lift).