Forests and other land ecosystems failed to curb climate change in 2023 as intense drought in the Amazon rainforest and record wildfires in Canada hampered absorption of carbon dioxide, according to a study released Monday. A record amount of carbon dioxide entered Earth's atmosphere last year, further feeding global warming, the researchers said.

Forests and other land ecosystems on average absorb nearly a third of annual emissions from fossil fuels, industry and other human causes. But in 2023, that "carbon sink" collapsed, according to a study from the Laboratory for Climate and Environmental Sciences, a French research organization.

"The sink is a pump, and we are pumping less carbon from the atmosphere into the land," co-author Philippe Ciais said. "Suddenly the pump is choking, and it's pumping less."