The Brazilian government revealed on Tuesday, September 5, that deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon decreased by 66 percent in August compared to the same month the previous year. This announcement was made alongside the approval of two new Indigenous reserves.
Addressing a ceremony commemorating Amazon Day, Environment Minister Marina Silva stated, “In August, we had a reduction of 66.11 percent in deforestation” in the portion of Brazil within the world’s largest rainforest.
According to satellite monitoring conducted by Brazil’s Space Research Institute INPE, deforestation cleared 1,661 square kilometers (641 square miles) in the Brazilian Amazon in August 2022 during the tenure of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro.
Minister Silva underscored, “These results show the determination of the Lula administration to break the cycle of abandonment and regression seen under the previous government.”
He added, “If we don’t protect the forest and its people, we’ll condemn the world to a brutal increase of CO2 emissions and, as a result, accelerating climate change.”
Upon assuming office in January, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva pledged to safeguard the imperiled Amazon, which plays a crucial role in absorbing carbon and mitigating global warming.
Researchers stressed that Indigenous reserves are of utmost importance for fulfilling this commitment, as they serve as strongholds against deforestation. Lula emphasized, “If there is no future for the Amazon and its people, there will be no future for the planet either,” when announcing the establishment of the two new reserves.
In April, the government issued decrees recognizing six new Indigenous territories, granting Indigenous communities the authority to inhabit the land and exclusively utilize its resources. On Tuesday, the government announced that another six reserves are likely to be officially demarcated by the end of the year.
Currently, there are approximately 800 reserves in the country, and almost one-third of them lack official demarcation, according to Brazil’s Indigenous Affairs Agency. Under Bolsonaro’s administration, no new reserves were designated.
The establishment of the 18,000-hectare (44,000-acre) Acapuri de Cima reserve and the 187,000-hectare (462,000-acre) Rio Gregorio reserve coincides with a crucial decision that the nation has been awaiting. This decision could either jeopardize or solidify Indigenous rights and gains.
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