Deforestation in Brazil - statistics & facts

From the Amazon in the north to the Pampa in the south, Brazil is a country rich in natural resources. The country has the second-largest forest area worldwide, and is home to more than 60 percent of the world's biggest rainforest, the Amazon. However, deforestation in Brazilian ecosystems has become a pressing issue, with the deforestation rate in the Amazon alone surpassing 10,000 square kilometers (km²) per year since 2019.

The loss in the Amazon 

Spanning 5.5 billion km² across Brazil and eight other countries, the Amazon rainforest is commonly known as the planet's lungs. But the production of oxygen is not the only important feature that makes deforestation in the Amazon a global concern. This tropical forest is a crucial home to numerous animal and plant species, which can be endangered by the loss of forest area and vegetation. Furthermore, indigenous people living in over 3,300 formally acknowledged indigenous territories are susceptible to deforestation, depleting not only their homes but also their ancestral knowledge and resources. Additionally, the Amazon rainforest, together with all the forest area in Brazil, represents an essential carbon sink for the planet.

The Cerrado is also suffering

The extent of forest loss in Brazil recorded in 2022 reached almost 1.8 million hectares, the highest in the last five years. While most of Brazil's forests are concentrated in the Amazon, other biomes, such as the Cerrado, are no stranger to deforestation. The Cerrado is a tropical savanna in the eastern part of the country, considered the world’s most species-rich savanna. It was also Brazil’s biome worst hit by deforestation in the past decades, in proportion to its total area. From 1985 to 2022, the Cerrado lost around 25 percent of its natural vegetation.

What is driving Brazil's deforestation?

Deforestation in Brazil is strongly associated with an economic growth model that heavily relies on commodity exports, in particular those linked to cattle ranching, mining, soybean production, or logging. This has resulted in an overall decrease in natural vegetation, compensated by agricultural and livestock-used land growth. Politics also play a significant role. After years of budget cuts and loose environmental restrictions, left-wing president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – who assumed office in January 2023 – aims to end deforestation by 2030. The new Brazilian government launched a plan that includes formalizing land ownership titles, establishing a rural registry to supervise correct forest management, and enhancing satellite imaging to monitor criminal activities. This coordinated policy is targeted at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and thus mitigating climate change.

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Forest area in Brazil: 495m ha

Annual tree cover loss in Brazil: 3.3m ha

Main cause of tree cover loss in Brazil: Commodity driven deforestation

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Leading countries in annual tree cover loss worldwide in 2022 (in 1,000 hectares)

Geography & Nature

Global tree cover loss 2022, by leading country

Primary forest loss in Brazil from 2001 to 2022 (in million hectares)

Energy & Environment

Primary forest loss in Brazil 2001-2022

Public forest area in Brazil in 2022, by biome (in hectares)

Geography & Nature

Public forest area in Brazil 2022, by biome

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Overview

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Scale

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Effects

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