brazil news from mongabay.com

Brazil's Rousseff vetoes part of controversial Forest Code revision

2012-05-25T23:35:00Z

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff today rejected 12 of 84 articles in a controversial bill that aims to relax restrictions on deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. The Brazilian government will announce the full details of the cuts on Monday.

Greenpeace lifts pig iron ship blockade in Brazil

2012-05-25T09:35:00Z

Greenpeace suspended its blockade of a pig iron shipment in the Brazil after industry representatives and authorities agreed to meet to resolve issues raised in a recent report by the activist group.

Cute animal pictures of the day: silvery marmosets run free in zoo

2012-05-24T19:02:00Z

The Zoological Society of London's (ZSL) Whipsnade Zoo is allowing its seven silvery marmosets (Mico argentatus) to roam the 600 acre facility freely.

Blue tarantula, walking cactus, and a worm from Hell: the top 10 new species of 2011

2012-05-23T17:03:00Z

A sneezing monkey, a blue tarantula, and an extinct walking cactus are just three of the remarkable new species listed in the annual Top Ten New Species put together by the International Institute for Species Exploration at Arizona State University. This year's list includes a wide-variety of life forms from fungi to flower and invertebrate to primate.

Groups urge President Obama to attend Rio+20 Sustainability Summit

2012-05-22T18:41:00Z

Twenty-two conservation, indigenous, health and science groups have called on U.S. President Barack Obama to attend the up-coming Rio+20 Summit on Sustainable Development.

Value of timber stocks could predict future logging roads, deforestation in the Amazon

2012-05-20T21:19:00Z

A new model aims to forecast future logging road development by estimating the value of timber stocks across the Brazilian Amazon. The research, published in PLoS One, could help prioritize areas for conservation to protect the maximum area of forest.

Brazilian deforestation lower in 2012 to date

2012-05-18T20:36:00Z

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is lower in 2012 relative to the same period last year according to satellite-based data released by Imazon, an NGO.

Tribe partners to protect Argentina's most endangered forest

2012-05-17T14:20:00Z

Last month, three Guarani communities, the local Argentine government of Misiones, and the UK-based NGO World Land Trust forged an agreement to create a nature reserve connecting three protected areas in the fractured, and almost extinct, Atlantic Forest. Dubbed the Emerald Green Corridor, the reserve protects 3,764 hectares (9,301 acres) in Argentina; although relatively small, the land connects three protected other protected areas creating a combined conservation area (41,000 hectares) around the size of Barbados in the greater Yaboti Biosphere Reserve. In Argentina only 1 percent of the historical Atlantic Forest survives.

U.S. car manufacturers linked to Amazon destruction, slave labor

2012-05-14T20:17:00Z

According to a new report by Greenpeace, top U.S. car companies such as Ford, General Motors, and Nissan are sourcing pig iron that has resulted in the destruction of Amazon rainforests, slave labor, and land conflict with indigenous tribes. Spending two years documenting the pig iron trade between northeastern Brazil and the U.S., Greenpeace has discovered that rainforests are cut and burned to power blast furnaces that produce pig iron, which is then shipped to the U.S. for steel production.

Emissions from deforestation depend on fate of cleared trees

2012-05-14T19:00:00Z

Carbon emissions from deforestation vary greatly depending on whether timber stocks are turned into finished wood products, converted into bioenergy feedstocks, or burned outright, reports a new study published in Nature Climate Change.

Greenpeace makes social media push for zero deforestation in Brazil

2012-05-12T13:52:00Z

Greenpeace is leveraging social media in its push for a zero deforestation target in Brazil.

Brazil's Congress OKs weakened version of forest law; environmentalists outraged

2012-04-26T21:47:00Z

Brazil's Congress on Wednesday approved controversial changes to the country's Forest Code, a move supporters argue will simplify environmental laws and ease agricultural expansion, but environmentalists say will spark deforestation and grant amnesty for past illegal logging. The measure needs to be approved by President Dilma Rousseff to become law.

Featured video: How to save the Amazon

2012-04-22T14:46:00Z

The past ten years have seen unprecedented progress in fighting deforestation in the Amazon. Indigenous rights, payments for ecosystem services, government enforcement, satellite imagery, and a spirit of cooperation amongst old foes has resulted in a decline of 80 percent in Brazil's deforestation rates.

Protesters hit Brazilian mining giant Vale over involvement in Belo Monte

2012-04-20T19:05:00Z

More than 150 demonstrators protested outside Vale's headquarters in Rio de Janeiro during the Brazilian mining giant's annual shareholder meeting over the company's social and environmental record, reports Amazon Watch, a group that is fighting the massive Belo Monte dam.

Pictures: Destruction of the Amazon's Xingu River begins for Belo Monte Dam

2012-04-18T19:21:00Z

The Xingu River will never be the same. Construction of Belo Monte Dam has begun in the Brazilian Amazon, as shown by these photos taken by Greenpeace, some of the first images of the hugely controversial project. Indigenous groups have opposed the dam vigorously for decades, fearing that it will upend their way of life. Environmentalists warn that the impacts of the dam—deforestation, methane emissions, and an irreparable changes to the Xingu River's ecosystem—far outweigh any benefits. The dam, which would be the world's third largest, is expected to displace 16,000 people according to the government, though some NGOs put the number at 40,000. The dam will flood over 40,000 hectares of pristine rainforest, an area nearly seven times the size of Manhattan.

Amazon tribe becomes first to get OK to sell REDD credits for rainforest conservation

2012-04-12T19:17:00Z

An Amazon tribe has become the first indigenous group in the world's largest rainforest to win certification of a forest carbon conservation project, potentially setting a precedent for other forest-dependent groups to seek compensation for safeguarding their native forests.

Brazil can eliminate deforestation by 2020, says governor of giant Amazon state

2012-04-05T13:14:00Z

Brazil can reduce Amazon deforestation to zero by 2020 while boosting rural livelihoods and maintaining healthy economic growth, the governor of Pará told mongabay.com on the sidelines of the Skoll World Forum, a major conference on social entrepreneurship, last week. Governor Simao Jatene is hopeful that a revolution in land management and governance can turn the tide in Pará, a state that is three times the size of California and has lost more Amazon forest -- 90,000 sq km of Amazon forest since 1996 -- over the past decade-and-a-half than any other in Brazil.

BP moves into the Amazon rainforest

2012-04-03T19:44:00Z

BP has acquired a stake in on exploration block in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, reports MarketWatch.

Judge suspends Brazilian dam that would flood sacred waterfalls

2012-04-02T15:35:00Z

A federal judge has suspended the construction of a 1,820 megawatt dam on the Teles Pires River in the Amazon. The judge found that indigenous communities were not properly consulted about the dam, which would flood a sacred site, known as the Seven Waterfalls, as well as imperil the livelihoods of indigenous fishermen.

Researchers launch tool that predicts Amazon deforestation a year before it happens

2012-03-30T06:49:00Z

Researchers have developed a methodology for accurately predicting where deforestation will occur in the Amazon up to a year in advance, enabling law enforcement agencies and officials to take preventative action before trees are actually chopped down, a forestry expert told mongabay.com on the sidelines of the Skoll World Forum for Social Entrepreneurship.

Degraded lands hold promise in feeding 9 billion, while preserving forests

2012-03-29T22:15:00Z

Making productive use of degraded lands and boosting productivity of small-holder farmers are key to meeting surging global consumption of agricultural products while preserving critical wildlife habitats, said an agricultural expert on the sidelines of the Skoll World Forum for Social Entrepreneurship in Oxford.

Brazil's indigenous affairs ministry: $32B carbon deal not valid

2012-03-28T12:47:00Z

An apparent carbon deal between an Irish carbon trading company and an indigenous tribe that sparked outrage in Brazil is "invalid" according to the president of FUNAI, Brazil's indigenous affairs agency.

Belo Monte Dam: A spearhead for Brazil’s dam-building attack on the Amazon?

2012-03-23T16:40:00Z

Brazil’s Belo Monte Dam on the Xingu River is now under construction despite its many controversies. The Brazilian government has launched an unprecedented drive to dam the Amazon’s tributaries, and Belo Monte is the spearhead for its efforts. Brazil’s 2011-2020 energy-expansion plan calls for building 48 additional large dams, of which 30 would be in the country’s Legal Amazon region1. Building 30 dams in 10 years means an average rate of one dam every four months in Brazilian Amazonia through 2020. Of course, the clock doesn’t stop in 2020, and the total number of planned dams in Brazilian Amazonia exceeds 60.

Google brings Street View, Maps to the Amazon (photos)

2012-03-22T20:48:00Z

Google has posted images of a stretch of rainforest and communities along the Amazon river on its Street View product available via Google Maps. The addition makes it possible to virtually explore communities and ecosystems in Earth's largest tropical forest.

Greenpeace calls for zero deforestation globally by 2020

2012-03-22T18:13:00Z

Greenpeace reiterated its call for an end to deforestation in Brazil by 2015 and globally by 2020 during its launch of an awareness-raising expedition down the Amazon River aboard the Rainbow Warrior.

Invasive primates threaten Atlantic Forest natives

2012-03-19T19:39:00Z

Scientists have called for the removal of eight invasive primates from Brazil's imperiled Atlantic Forest in a new study published in mongabay.com's open access journal Tropical Conservation Society. The researchers fear that the eight alien monkeys could hurt other species due to increased competition, predation, and possible disease.

International Labor Organization raps Brazil over monster dam

2012-03-07T23:31:00Z

The UN's International Labor Organization (ILO) has released a report stating that the Brazilian government violated the rights of indigenous people by moving forward on the massive Belo Monte dam without consulting indigenous communities. The report follows a request last year by the The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights for the Brazilian government to suspend the dam, which is currently being constructed on the Xingu River in the Amazon.

Rally calls on Brazil President to veto new forest code

2012-03-07T22:48:00Z

A coalition of 200 organizations, known as the Comitê Brasil in Defense of Forests and Sustainable Development, rallied today in Brasilia against proposed changes to Brazil's Forestry Code. The code, which was supposed to be voted on this week but has been delayed to shore up more support, would make changes in over 40-year-old code that some conservationists fear could lead to further deforestation in the Amazon. Protestors called on the President of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, to veto the bill as it stands now, holding signs exclaiming, "Veta Dilma!" ("Veto it Dilma!").

Brazil delays Forest Code vote

2012-03-07T10:40:00Z

Brazil's Congress will delay its vote on a controversial revision to its forest code, which regulates how much forest can be legally chopped down, reports Brazilian state media.

Brazil's plan to cut protected areas for dams faces constitutional challenge

2012-02-17T19:02:00Z

Federal public prosecutors in Brazil have challenged a plan to strip protected status from 86,288 hectares of land to make way for five new dams, reports International Rivers. The challenge is set to be heard by Brazil's Supreme Court.

The camera trap revolution: how a simple device is shaping research and conservation worldwide

2012-02-14T14:21:00Z

I must confess to a recent addiction: camera trap photos. When the Smithsonian released 202,000 camera trap photos to the public online, I couldn’t help but spend hours transfixed by the private world of animals. There was the golden snub-monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana), with its unmistakably blue face staring straight at you, captured on a trail in the mountains of China. Or a southern tamandua (Tamandua tetradactyla), a tree anteater that resembles a living Muppet, poking its nose in the leaf litter as sunlight plays on its head in the Peruvian Amazon. Or the dim body of a spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) led by jewel-like eyes in the Tanzanian night. Or the less exotic red fox (Vulpes vulpes) which admittedly appears much more exotic when shot in China in the midst of a snowstorm. Even the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca), an animal I too often connect with cartoons and stuffed animals, looks wholly real and wild when captured by camera trap: no longer a symbol or even a pudgy bear at the zoo, but a true animal with its own inner, mysterious life.

Photos of the day: a celebration of wetlands (for World Wetlands Day)

2012-02-02T23:21:00Z

Forget the groundhogs, February 2nd is also World Wetland Day, commemorating the historic convention of wetlands in Ramsar, Iran in 1971. The Ramsar Treaty was an international agreement meant to address the loss and degradation of wetlands worldwide.

New meteorological theory argues that the world's forests are rainmakers

2012-02-01T17:36:00Z

New, radical theories in science often take time to be accepted, especially those that directly challenge longstanding ideas, contemporary policy or cultural norms. The fact that the Earth revolves around the sun, and not vice-versa, took centuries to gain widespread scientific and public acceptance. While Darwin's theory of evolution was quickly grasped by biologists, portions of the public today, especially in places like the U.S., still disbelieve. Currently, the near total consensus by climatologists that human activities are warming the Earth continues to be challenged by outsiders. Whether or not the biotic pump theory will one day fall into this grouping remains to be seen. First published in 2007 by two Russian physicists, Victor Gorshkov and Anastassia Makarieva, the still little-known biotic pump theory postulates that forests are the driving force behind precipitation over land masses.

Brazilian mining company connected to Belo Monte dam voted worst corporation

2012-01-31T16:18:00Z

The world's second largest mining company, Vale, has been given the dubious honor of being voted the world's most awful corporation in terms of human rights abuses and environmental destruction by the Public Eye Awards. Vale received over 25,000 votes online, likely prompted in part by its stake in the hugely controversial Brazilian mega-dam, Belo Monte, which is being constructed on the Xingu River. An expert panel gave a second award to British bank Barclay's for speculation on food prices, which the experts stated was worsening hunger worldwide.

Brazil begins preliminary damming of Xingu River as protests continue

2012-01-19T19:58:00Z

Damming of the Xingu River has begun in Brazil to make way for the eventual construction of the hugely controversial, Belo Monte dam. The Norte Energia (NESA) consortium has begun building coffer dams across the Xingu, which will dry out parts of the river before permanent damming, reports the NGO International Rivers. Indigenous tribes, who have long opposed the dam plans on their ancestral river, conducted a peaceful protest that interrupted construction for a couple hours.

Deforestation, climate change threaten the ecological resilience of the Amazon rainforest

2012-01-19T02:02:00Z

The combination of deforestation, forest degradation, and the effects of climate change are weakening the resilience of the Amazon rainforest ecosystem, potentially leading to loss of carbon storage and changes in rainfall patterns and river discharge, finds a comprehensive review published in the journal Nature.

Peruvian smugglers traffic illegal rainforest timber from Brazil to America

2012-01-11T22:57:00Z

An investigation by Brazil's Federal Police has detailed a significant trade of illegally logged rainforest wood by Peruvian nationals making its way from northern Brazil to the U.S. and Mexico, reports O Globo.

Colonization program remains important driver of deforestation in Brazil

2012-01-10T13:58:00Z

Government-subsidized colonization of the Amazon rainforest remains an important driver of forest loss in Brazil, but has mixed economic value, argues a paper published in Biological Conservation.

As Amazon deforestation falls, food production rises

2012-01-09T22:38:00Z

A sharp drop in deforestation has been accompanied by an increase in food production in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, reports a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. The research argues that policy interventions, combined with pressure from environmental groups, have encouraged agricultural expansion in already-deforested areas, rather than driving new forest clearing.

Weird carnivorous flower devours worms underground

2012-01-09T20:10:00Z

A worm measuring only a millimeter in length scoots its way through relatively massive grains of white sand. The worm, known as a nematode or roundworm, is seeking lunch in the form of bacteria. Suddenly, however, its journey is interrupted: it is caught on a large green surface. Unable to wiggle free the worm is slowly digested, becoming lunch itself for an innocuous purple flower called Philcoxia minensis.

The year in review for rainforests

2011-12-28T18:08:00Z

2011 was designated as "Year of the Forests" by the United Nations. While there was relatively little progress on intergovernmental forest protection programs during the year, a lot happened elsewhere. Below is a look at some of the biggest tropical forest-related news stories for 2011. We at mongabay readily acknowledge there were a number of important temperate and boreal forest developments, including Britain's decision not to privatize its forests and the severe drought in Texas, but this article will cover only tropical forest news.

Earth systems disruption: Does 2011 indicate the "new normal" of climate chaos and conflict?

2011-12-21T19:02:00Z

The year 2011 has presented the world with a shocking increase in irregular weather and disasters linked to climate change. Just as the 2007 "big melt" of summer arctic sea ice sent scientists and environmentalists scrambling to re-evaluate the severity of climate change, so have recent events forced major revisions and updates in climate science.

Is the Russian Forest Code a warning for Brazil?

2011-12-19T14:48:00Z

Brazil, which last week moved to reform its Forest Code, may find lessons in Russia's revision of its forest law in 2007, say a pair of Russian scientists. The Brazilian Senate last week passed a bill that would relax some of forest provisions imposed on landowners. Environmentalists blasted the move, arguing that the new Forest Code — provided it is not vetoed by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff next year — could undermine the country's progress in reducing deforestation.

Estimating the rich diversity of galling insects

2011-12-12T18:45:00Z

How does one estimate the number of tiny, cryptic "galling" insects without finding and describing every one (a task that could take centuries of taxonomic work)? According to a new paper in mongabay.com's open access journal Tropical Conservation Science, you count the plants. Galling insects use plant tissue for development creating a "gall," or abnormal growth on the plant. Such little-known insects include gall wasps, gall midges, aphids, and jumping plant lice. The groups are known to be highly diverse, with over 2,000 species described from the US alone; scientists have previously estimated that there may be as many as 132,000 different species.

Brazil passes controversial Forest Code reform environmentalists say will be 'a disaster' for the Amazon

2011-12-06T23:59:00Z

The Brazilian Senate tonight passed controversial legislation that will reform the country's 46-year-old Forest Code, which limits how much forest can be cleared on private lands. Environmentalists are calling the move "a disaster" that will reverse Brazil's recent progress in slowing deforestation in the world's largest rainforests.

Amazon rainforest loss in Brazil drops to lowest ever reported

2011-12-05T23:59:00Z

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell to the lowest level on record between August 2010 and July 2011 according to preliminary data from Brazil's National Institute of Space Research (INPE).

Deforestation and forest degradation slows in Brazil's Amazon since August

2011-12-02T23:17:00Z

Deforestation and forest degradation are down moderately from August through October 2011 relative to the same period a year ago, reports a satellite-based assessment released today by Imazon. Imazon's near-real time system found that 512 sq km of rainforest were cleared between Aug 2011 and Oct 2011, the first three months of the deforestation calendar year, which runs from August 1 through July 31. The figure represents a 4 percent decline from the 533 sq km cleared in 2010

Environmental news in review: Keystone pipeline delayed, Dole exits banana project, a rhino goes extinct

2011-12-02T01:49:00Z

November 2011 was a big month for environmental news stories. Topping the list was the Obama Administration's decision to delay the controversial Keystone pipeline which would have carried tar sands oil from Canada to the Gulf Coast. The scheme was vehemently opposed by environmental groups which turned the issue into a litmus test for Obama, whose campaign platform included a promise to take action on greenhouse gas emissions. More than 1,200 protesters were arrested in demonstrations leading up to Obama's decision.

Brazil's Forest Code vote delayed

2011-11-30T18:27:00Z

The Brazilian Senate's much-anticipated vote over proposed changes to the country's Forest Code will take place Tuesday December 6, rather than today. The delay will give lawmakers more time to understand pending revisions to the code, which limits the amount of land private landowners can clear and restricts development in ecologically sensitive areas.