Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has seen a significant decrease of 33.6 percent in the first half of 2023, according to new figures released by the country’s Environment Ministry. This period coincides with the first six months of the new administration of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has made a commitment to halt the destruction of the world’s largest tropical rainforest by 2030.
Between January and June of this year, the Brazilian Amazon lost 2,649 square kilometers (1,023 square miles) of forest cover, a sharp decline from the 3,988 sq. km lost in the first half of 2022. The deforested area also marks the lowest for this January-June period since the beginning of President Jair Bolsonaro’s tenure in 2019 when he advocated for unrestricted Amazon development.
Satellite data from the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) reveals a reduction in deforestation from 1,120 sq. km in June 2022 to 661 sq. km in June 2023, amounting to a decrease of 41 percent. Deputy Environment Minister Joao Paulo Capobianco highlighted the significance of this decline, particularly as Amazon devastation tends to be most severe during the months of drought, making it easier for illegal loggers to operate.
Environment Minister Marina Silva, an internationally recognized environmentalist, attributed the positive results to various factors, including the reorganization of monitoring agencies and President Lula’s commitment to combating deforestation and climate change. Silva also emphasized the experience gained from 2003 when Lula began his first term as president and implemented a comprehensive program to protect the Amazon.
Silva acknowledged that deforestation in the Brazilian Cerrado, South America’s largest woodland savanna and the country’s second-largest ecosystem, did increase during the first half of the year. However, she expressed confidence in her team’s ability to address the issue and reverse the trend. The Cerrado lost 4,608 sq. km of forest cover during the first six months of 2023, which represents a 21 percent increase compared to the same period in 2022, according to INPE data.
While deforestation in the Cerrado experienced an 83 percent surge between May 2022 and May 2023, the loss of woodland savanna in June 2023 was 14.6 percent lower than in the same month of the previous year.
Looking forward, Minister Silva stated that her team aims to develop a plan to prevent and control deforestation in the Cerrado during the second half of the year, with the objective of achieving the same positive results as seen in the Amazon.
It is important to note the significance of maintaining the balance of viewpoints and perspectives on this issue. The improved situation in the Brazilian Amazon is undoubtedly a positive development, but attention must also be paid to ongoing challenges in other ecosystems such as the Cerrado. By reporting on both the progress and remaining hurdles, the complexity of the topic is acknowledged and a comprehensive understanding can be achieved.
