logo Agência Brasil
General

Brazil lost 1.8% of forest coverage in two years

Forest areas have been lost to agriculture, grazing, and commercial
Vitor Abdala reports from Agência Brasil
Published on 25/09/2015 - 13:32
Rio de Janeiro
Desmatamento
© Wilson Dias/Agência Brasil
Madeiras agem na Amazonia

In these two years, an area of 204 sq km was replanted, but the total deforested area was nearly 300 times larger, 59,200 sq km.Wilson DiasAgência Brasil

Brazil lost 1.8% of its forests between 2010 and 2012, according to data disclosed today (Sept. 25) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). In 2010, the country had 3.26 million square kilometers of forest vegetation, but in 2012, this area had been reduced to 3.2 million sq km.

In these two years, an area of 204 sq km was replanted, but the total deforested area was nearly 300 times larger, 59,200 sq km. The loss of forest cover was mainly due to agricultural expansion (68%), expansion of planted pasture (28%) and commercial forestry (4%).

However, most of the loss consisted of non-tree coverage (natural pasture), areas of grassland subject to non-intensive pastoral activity. In the period surveyed, these areas lost 7.8% of their surface to agricultural expansion and planted pasture. For this type of vegetation, which occurs mainly in the cerrado (a savannah-like biome in Brazil's central area), the caatinga (xeric shrubland in Northeast Brazil) and the pampas (a grassy area found in the South region), the loss amounted to approximately 149,670 sq km.

The findings are part of a groundbreaking study on Changes in Forest Cover and Land Use. The study, which is set in the context of world conferences on the environment, the implementation of the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), aims to monitor Brazil's land coverage and use every two years and measure the results against international data.


Translated by Mayra Borges


Fonte: Brazil lost 1.8% of forest coverage in two years