- The rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen significantly since Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office in January 2023, according to government data.
- The area of deforestation detected by INPE’s forest monitoring system amounted to 2,649 square kilometers in the first half of the year, a 34% decline last year.
- Lula has prioritized reining in deforestation since assuming the presidency. Last month, he announced his administration’s plan to eliminate deforestation by 2030 as part of Brazil’s pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen significantly since Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office in January 2023, as revealed by data released today from Brazil’s national space research institute, INPE.
The area of deforestation detected by INPE’s forest monitoring system amounted to 2,649 square kilometers in the first half of the year, marking a decline of about 34% compared to 2022 when nearly 4,000 square kilometers were cleared.
The loss in the first six months of 2023 is the lowest since 2019, according to the system, which is known as DETER.
Lula has prioritized reining in deforestation since assuming the presidency, which includes restoring funding for environmental law enforcement and conservation programs. Last month, he announced his administration’s plan to eliminate deforestation by 2030 as part of Brazil’s pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The new data suggests that the administration’s early efforts may already be having an impact on the ground, reversing the trend of rising deforestation that had taken hold under Jair Bolsonaro’s presidency.
During Bolsonaro’s four-year tenure, deforestation in the Amazon increased by 60%, reaching levels last seen in the late 2000s.
Brazil is expected to release its official estimate of deforestation for the 2022/23 year, which ends on July 31, in October or November. Brazil’s annual assessment is based on higher resolution satellite data than that used in its alert-based system.
Report sums up Bolsonaro’s destruction legacy and Amazon’s next critical steps
Header image: Deforestation in the Amazon in 2023. Photo credit: Rhett A. Butler
