To: amazonfund.gov.br
When Brazil goes back on protecting the Amazon rainforest
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While deforestation has increased for the second year in a row in the Amazon and it is more than ever urgent to take all measures to preserve the largest tropical forest in the world, the Brazilian government led by Michel Temer is now considering amputate of one million hectares a protected area in the state of Amazonas.
Why is this important?
The affected areas are located in a strategic region where there are still large areas of intact forest. They are now protected, but if they are open to exploitation, deforestation or mega-infrastructure construction, many environmental services and essential biodiversity will be lost.
Already in 2016, deforestation in the state of Amazonas has increased by 54% compared to the previous year.
Proponents of the project to declassify protected areas claim that economic activities are already developed there. Thus, decommissioning these areas would only formalize a state of affairs.
Greenpeace flew over the endangered area to verify these allegations. And in fact, there are huge areas of forest still preserved, with no significant trace of occupation or degradation. Only on the edge of these preserved areas are there signs of recent deforestation and burning plots, which may indicate the recent establishment of agro-industrial or forestry operations.
The downgrading of the conservation areas thus looks more like the opening of a new frontier for the industrialists who seek to extend their activities in a region that has been protected by the previous government.
At a time when urgent measures should be taken to reduce deforestation, the Brazilian government is stepping up attacks against the preservation of the Amazon, in favor of industrial lobbies. It thus seriously undermines the commitments it made under the Paris Agreement to combat global warming. It also breaks promises to international donors, such as Norway and Germany, who have supported the country in its efforts to control deforestation in the Amazon in recent years.
The creation of protected areas is one of the key ways to preserve forests. In Amazonia, this has contributed to reducing the rate of deforestation between 2005 and 2012. With this proposal for decommissioning, the government opens the way to land grabbing and the destruction of still intact areas, contrary to the measures it should be taken while we face a double climate crisis and extinction of biodiversity. More information about: http://www.amazonfund.gov.br/en/home/
Already in 2016, deforestation in the state of Amazonas has increased by 54% compared to the previous year.
Proponents of the project to declassify protected areas claim that economic activities are already developed there. Thus, decommissioning these areas would only formalize a state of affairs.
Greenpeace flew over the endangered area to verify these allegations. And in fact, there are huge areas of forest still preserved, with no significant trace of occupation or degradation. Only on the edge of these preserved areas are there signs of recent deforestation and burning plots, which may indicate the recent establishment of agro-industrial or forestry operations.
The downgrading of the conservation areas thus looks more like the opening of a new frontier for the industrialists who seek to extend their activities in a region that has been protected by the previous government.
At a time when urgent measures should be taken to reduce deforestation, the Brazilian government is stepping up attacks against the preservation of the Amazon, in favor of industrial lobbies. It thus seriously undermines the commitments it made under the Paris Agreement to combat global warming. It also breaks promises to international donors, such as Norway and Germany, who have supported the country in its efforts to control deforestation in the Amazon in recent years.
The creation of protected areas is one of the key ways to preserve forests. In Amazonia, this has contributed to reducing the rate of deforestation between 2005 and 2012. With this proposal for decommissioning, the government opens the way to land grabbing and the destruction of still intact areas, contrary to the measures it should be taken while we face a double climate crisis and extinction of biodiversity. More information about: http://www.amazonfund.gov.br/en/home/