Indigenous territories and protected areas in the Amazon forests of Brazil are experiencing higher and faster rates of deforestation than unprotected areas. This is despite the expansion of protected areas in 52% of the Brazilian Amazon from 2000 to 2021 and the growing recognition of indigenous territories, resulting in an alarming pace of forest loss in these areas. According to a new study published in Nature.
Xiangming Xiao, professor of biology at the University of Oklahoma, said: Primary author of the report.
Between 2000 and 2021, about 27 million hectares of forest were lost in unprotected areas of the Brazilian Amazon. However, between 2018 and 2021, the relative rate of total forest loss was higher in protected and indigenous areas, almost twice as high as in unprotected areas. The increase is likely linked to economic development and the easing of environmental protection policies backed by former President Jair Bolsonaro’s government beginning in 2019, the report said.
“Indigenous lands and protected areas are vulnerable in different ways than unprotected areas,” Xiao said. “The forests in these areas are mostly primary forests. They have more biomass and biodiversity, and their loss would be disproportionate in terms of biodiversity, conservation and carbon storage. It will make an impact.
Between March and September 2020 alone, Brazilian parliamentarians passed 27 laws weakening environmental regulations, and fines for violating environmental protection laws fell by 72% over the same period. Under the Bolsonaro administration, mineral exploration and extraction has increased, with approximately 100 million hectares of applications currently pending, of which nearly 20% are in protected areas, indigenous territories or areas with strict protection regulations. It is done. About half a dozen proposed bills could reduce federal authority over protected areas and ease restrictions on economic activity on Indigenous lands.
In 2020, satellite data reveals record high illegal mining and loss of primary forest. COVID-19 is also having an impact, according to the report, hitting indigenous communities hard and making their lands easier for illegal loggers and miners to encroach. Currently, Brazil’s Supreme Court is considering a case that may limit the lands identifiable as indigenous by allowing title only to be given to territories that were owned by indigenous peoples in 1988. increase.
The study also shows that not all protected areas are created equal. Closely monitored protected areas have lost more forest than protected areas designed for sustainable use. Xiao said that even though areas with strict protection are expected to be better preserved, the system may be different and the growth of industry, COVID-19, and economic development over the past few years We speculate that they may be less able to handle the pressure of
But what’s more interesting, Xiao said, is that it shows that protected areas designed for sustainable use are still effective.
“Sustainable use is good for conservation,” said Shao. “This raises the question of how to address forest conservation and human development. shows. Protection must balance needs [of the forest and of people]”
Xiao said Brazil’s recent presidential elections could herald increased forest regulation. Satellite imagery used in the report shows variations in deforestation rates across the country, paralleling administrative changes. The period of least deforestation, about 2004-2010, coincides with the first administration of President Luis Inasiorulada and his President Silva, who prioritized conservation of the Amazon. Shao appointed indigenous leader Sonia Guajajara, born in the land of Arariboia, to become the leader of the Guajajara tribe, including Lula da Silva’s history of strong environmental policy, as head of the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples. It states that it is a recent environmental initiative, such as the election. To reduce deforestation.
“Of course there will be challenges,” Xiao admitted. “But we are already working on satellite data from 2022 and we will see how governments and policies affect conservation. ”
