The fight against deforestation in the Amazon rainforest is showing results, despite a recent study showing that legal and illegal logging has reduced the rainforest by over 240,000 square kilometers in the last decade. The Amazon Information Network has published a study showing that between 2000 and 2010, an area of rainforest larger than the size of Great Britain was destroyed. The network blames illegal logging and legal construction and development projects for the deforestation, including the building of highways and dams, mining, and oil and gas extraction. However, the Brazilian government has reported that annual deforestation is at its lowest level since measurements began in 1988, indicating that the fight against deforestation is having an impact.
The Amazon Information Network is made up of eleven environmental organizations in eight South American countries and French Guiana. Brazil is responsible for around 80% of deforestation in the Amazon, with Peru accounting for just 6% and Colombia for almost 5%. The remaining 9% is spread across other countries that have a portion of the Amazon rainforest. The Brazilian Space Agency monitors deforestation in the Amazon using satellites and has reported that deforestation has decreased by around 76% since 1990. This puts the goal of reducing deforestation by 80% by 2020 within reach. However, despite these positive developments, one-fifth of the Brazilian rainforest has already been destroyed, with much of the land now developed and unlikely to return to its natural state.
The rainforests of the world are important carbon stores, and further deforestation could have significant implications for the global climate. While the fight against deforestation in the Amazon is showing results, it is clear that more needs to be done to protect this vital ecosystem.
