Deforestation in Brazil Falls by 61% in First Month Under Lula
Deforestation in Brazil Falls by 61% in First Month Under Lula
According to new satellite data, Lula's anti-deforestation efforts are already working.
Last year Brazilian presidential candidate, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva—known to most as Lula—promised, during his campaign, to protect the Amazon rainforest. In his first month in office, Lula demonstrated that he intends to deliver on that promise.
According to an analysis of satellite data by Reuters, deforestation rates in Brazil fell by 61% in January compared to the year before.
Lula’s environmental protection policies will have global consequences. The Amazon rainforest stores an estimated 150 to 200 billion metric tons of carbon. To put that in context, all countries around the world emit about 35 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide every year.
A brief history of deforestation in Brazil
Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, deforestation rates in Brazil rose dramatically. The largest driver of deforestation was, and continues to be, Brazil’s cattle industry, which exports more beef than any other country in the world.
In 2002, Brazilian voters elected Lula for the first time. During his presidency, deforestation rates fell by 75% as he passed environmentally progressive policies and enforced existing conservation laws.
But a few years after Lula left office, that progress ground to a halt. In 2018, deforestation began to accelerate after Jair Bolsonaro took office. During his presidency, Bolsonaro cut funding to many environmental protection agencies.
An election with global consequences
Last October Brazilians went to the polls to choose between Lula and Bolsonaro in one of the most environmentally consequential elections of the year. In a runoff election, 50.9% of voters chose Lula.
Weeks after taking office, Lula’s administration launched a series of anti-deforestation raids. According to satellite data analyzed by Reuters, 64 square miles (167 square km) were lost to deforestation in January, 61% less than a year before.
If Lula delivers on all of his conservation policy pledges, Carbon Brief estimates that Brazil’s deforestation rate could fall by 89% by 2030.
Brazil’s election, like many before it, proves that when it comes to climate action, elections have major consequences.