Deforestation in Amazon down 21% in a year

The deforestation of the area known as Legal Amazon dropped 21% in a year, interrupting a streak of highs in the last five years, according to figures from the Deforestation Alert System (SAD), of the Institute of Man and Environment of the Amazon (Imazon), released this week.

From August 2016 to July 2017, a total of 2,834 km² were deforested. In the previous period, the accumulated area added up to 3,579 km². Despite the improvement, the deforested area is nearly twice as large as the city of São Paulo (1,521 km²).

According to Imazon researcher Antônio, one of the reasons behind the significant reduction in deforestation is the high basis for comparison. “In 2016, we had the largest deforested area in a year. It was the highest peak for deforestation ever reported by SAD since 2008. We're comparing 2017 with an extremely elevated number,” he said.

Conservation units

Victor also mentioned the increase in deforestation in conservation units. In July, it was the second most severely affected area—22% of the total. “There has been a considerable growth in the number of alerts in the last few years in southern Amazonas, affecting the state of Amazonas and Rondônia, where there's a concentration of conservation units under strong pressure exerted by the efforts to have the units reduced, changed, or eliminated altogether,” he said.

Most deforested regions are located in private territories (61%), followed by settlements (15%) and areas demarcated as indigenous (2%).

The monthly survey covers August–July, as it encompasses the periods with highest and lowest rainfall. “Rain plays a key role in the logistics of those who perpetrate deforestation, as access becomes considerably more difficult,” he explained. Historically, he argued, from July to October—the Summer in the Amazon, during which rainfall is at its lowest—deforestation tends to increase. “If law enforcement measures are taken, with monitoring and punishment, it conveys the idea that the government is making an effort and that a reduction is possible,” he said.

Figures

In July this year, SAD reported 544 km² deforested in the Legal Amazon—an area encompassing the seven states in the North, as well as Mato Grosso and Maranhão. The area is similar to that observed in July 2016—539 km².

The monitoring of the deforestation of the Amazon is officially carried out by the Project for the Monitoring of the Legal Amazon System, of the National Institute of Space Research (INPE), with figures released on a yearly basis. There are still no data for 1016/2017. Victor also explains that the monitoring models do not allow comparison, as their methodologies are incompatible.

Law enforcement

According to Brazil's Environment Minister Sarney Filho, the fall in deforestation comes as a result of “law enforcement efforts.” “The state in the Amazon has really made its presence felt and the results can already be seen,” he released a note saying.

Among the measures highlighted by the ministry is the recovery of the budget for Brazil's environmental watchdog IBAMA and the Chico Mendes Biodiversity Conservation Institute (ICMBio).

Sarney Filho also mentioned the incentives for the sustainable development of the region. In addition to the law enforcement measures, he said, measures must be adopted to strengthen the economy as well as the environmental conservation of the region. “We're implementing a sustainable model that gives the standing forest its proper value,” the minister declared.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira