Deforestation continues in the Brazilian Amazon. In November, it even jumped 104% from the same month in 2018, according to official data released on Saturday.
The Bolsonaro effect, the current Brazilian president, has been badly felt since his inauguration a year ago. In addition to the establishment of means to fight corruption and crime, the leader had promised to revive the country on the economic level. To do this, he authorized the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest for the benefit of farmers. As a result, more and more companies are not reluctant to set fire to land deliberately in order to be able to sow or raise livestock.
+ 104% in one year
And it shows in the numbers. According to a new report from the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE), which provides official data on deforestation, 563 square kilometers of land was cleared last November. This is around 104% more deforestation compared to the same month in 2018.
It is recalled that it is currently the rainy season in the Amazon. During this period, deforestation activities generally slow down. The fact of recording such an increase is therefore very significant.
More generally, there were 8,974.3 square kilometers of deforested land in the first 11 months of the year. This is almost double the 4,878.7 square kilometers reported for the first 11 months of last year. Indigenous areas were the most affected, with deforestation increasing by 74.5% compared to the previous period.
The failure of COP 25
These figures come after the COP25 in Madrid has just ended. But there again, the news is not encouraging. This conference, which wanted to be the “launching pad” for an acceleration of actions in favor of the climate, was not up to par, failing to find an agreement on the rules of international carbon markets, the last part of the Paris Agreement of 2015.
For all non-governmental organizations, these last two weeks of discussions have brought to light the lack of ambition of the main players on the planet, who are more focused on protecting their industrial interests. None of the major emitting countries has made any significant announcements.
“The international community has lost an important opportunity to demonstrate greater ambition,” said United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres, adding: We must not give up.
“I have never seen such a disconnect between what science demands and what climate negotiations bring,” said Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists.
