Clearing of Brazilian Amazon Fell 45 Percent in Last Year, Officials Say

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell by 45 percent from August 2008 to July 2009, the largest annual reduction since Brazil started tracking rainforest destruction in 1988, government officials reported. Using satellite images from the National Institute for Space Research, Brazilian officials calculated that about 2,700 square miles of forest were removed during that span. About 5,000 square miles had been cleared during the previous 12-month period. Government officials said the amount of deforestation has been falling since 2004, when a record 10,425 square miles were removed. “The new deforestation data represents an extraordinary and significant reduction for Brazil,” President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in a statement. The use of satellite technology and more aggressive government enforcement have helped slow deforestation of the critical rainforest, officials said. But according to Paulo Gustavo, environmental policy director of Conservation International, the biggest factor in the most recent data was the falling prices of beef, soy and other products that require the clearing of forest. Deforestation causes 75 percent of Brazil’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to the National Inventory of Greenhouse Gases.