Is Brazil still cutting down the Amazon rainforest?

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has hit the highest annual level in a decade, a new report has shown, despite increasing global concern over the accelerating devastation since President Jair Bolsonaro took office in 2019. “Deforestation is still out of control,” Carlos Souza, a researcher at Imazon said.

Who is cutting down trees in the Brazilian Amazon?

Cattle ranching is the leading cause of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. In Brazil, this has been the case since at least the 1970s: government figures attributed 38 percent of deforestation from 1966-1975 to large-scale cattle ranching. Today the figure in Brazil is closer to 70 percent.

Is Brazil doing anything to stop deforestation?

It created new conservation areas and strengthened law enforcement. Transnational initiatives such as the soy moratorium, the UN’s Redd (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation) programme and the Amazon Fund added incentives to keep the forest standing.

Is logging illegal in the Amazon rainforest?

Illegal logging in the Amazon While laws exist which authorize logging in designated areas, illegal logging is widespread in Brazil and several Amazon countries. A study by a Brazilian commission showed that 80\% of all logging in the Amazon was illegal during the late 90s2.

How much of the Amazon rainforest has been destroyed 2021?

However, deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, often dubbed “the lungs of the Earth” only fell by 1.2 percent from January to August 2021 compared with the same period in 2020. That decrease equalled 6,026 square kilometres, or an area more than seven times the size of New York City.

What is happening to the Amazon rainforest now?

It’s not looking good so far: More than 1,000 large fires have burned across the rainforest since January. Experts say this year is on track to be as bad as 2020, when fires razed more than 19 million acres of the world’s largest tropical forest.

Who is cutting the rainforest down?

Direct human causes of deforestation include logging, agriculture, cattle ranching, mining, oil extraction and dam-building.

Is logging illegal in Brazil?

In practice, illegal logging is widespread in Brazil. Up to 60 to 80 percent of all logging in Brazil is estimated to be illegal, with 70\% of the timber cut wasted in the mills. Most illegal logging companies are international companies that don’t replant the trees and the practice is extensive.

How much money does Brazil make from logging?

Brazil is a leading producer, processor and consumer of wood-based products. Roundwood production totalled 254.4 million cubic metres in 2015, and the forestry sector contributed USD 22.5 billion to the economy in 2011, which is approximately 1.1\% of the GDP.

Why are humans cutting down the Amazon rainforest?

The forests are cut down to make way for vast plantations where products such as bananas, palm oil, pineapple, sugar cane, tea and coffee are grown. As with cattle ranching, the soil will not sustain crops for long, and after a few years the farmers have to cut down more rainforest for new plantations.

How fast is the Amazon being cut down?

Using the 2005 deforestation rates, it was estimated that the Amazon rainforest would be reduced by 40\% in two decades. The rate of deforestation has slowed since the early 2000s, but the forest has continued to shrink every year, and analysis of satellite data shows a sharp rise in deforestation since 2018.