Data from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE) show that deforestation in the Amazon rainforest increased by 18% year-on-year in March 2025, mainly in the states of Pará and Mato Grosso. Illegal logging and mining activities have led to a loss of biodiversity and a shrinking of habitat for endangered species such as orangutans.…

A study by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in collaboration with the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUST) finds that deforestation in the Amazon leads to increased local rainfall during the rainy season, but significant reductions in precipitation in areas up to 60 kilometers away, and reduced local rainfall during the dry season…

Brazilian potash company plans to invest $2.5 billion to develop the Otazis potash mine in the Amazon hinterland, which is expected to produce 9.2 million tons of potash annually to alleviate the country’s dependence on 83% of potash imports. The project site is adjacent to an area inhabited by the Mula indigenous people, which poses…

The accelerated construction of a four-lane highway through 40,000 acres of rainforest in Belém, Brazil, has sparked an ecological crisis. The project has already destroyed 26,000 ancient trees and cut off migration routes for endangered species. Scientists have warned that the Amazon rainforest is approaching a tipping point of ecological collapse, with only 74% of…

In February 2025, Brazilian environmental enforcement officers launched Operation Maravalia, targeting the areas of the Amazon rainforest most affected by illegal logging. During the two-week raids, nearly a dozen sawmills were shut down and fines totaling 15.5 million reais (about $2.7 million) were issued. Although about 90 percent of the illegally harvested timber in the…

February 12, 2025 – The Brazilian government plans to expand its selective logging policy over the next two years, allowing companies participating in timber concession programs to cut no more than six trees per hectare for 30 years and avoiding rare species. Brazilian President Lula also plans to manage up to 310,000 square kilometers of…

February 5, 2025 – The dissolution of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will have a serious impact on a number of aid programs in South America, including the protection of the Amazon rainforest in Brazil.USAID’s largest program in Brazil is the Amazon Biodiversity Conservation Partnership, which works to conserve the rainforest and support…

In the latest news, the Tiputini Biodiversity Research Center, located deep in the Ecuadorian Amazon, has been experiencing an intergenerational decline in bird populations since around 2012, nearly halving by 2022. Scientists ruled out disease, parasites, toxins and pollutants as factors, and concluded that the climate crisis is the most likely factor contributing to bird…

A new report suggests that the Amazon rainforest will be hit hard in 2024 after Brazil’s deforestation rate is reduced by nearly 50 percent in 2023, according to a 22 January 2025 news release.In mid-October, the Global Initiative to Combat Transnational Organized Crime (GICTOC) reported that large-scale fires are raging in the Amazon Basin, where…

The World Economic Forum 2025 Annual Meeting was held in Davos, Switzerland, from January 20 to 24, local time. During a panel discussion on the theme “Brazil: More Action Ahead?” the panelists discussed Brazil’s contribution to sustainable development and renewable energy in the context of COP30. According to Helder Barbalho, Governor of the Brazilian state…