Brazil’s Amazon Deforestation Hits Lowest Level on Record

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon fell to 3,335 square kilometres in the 12 months through July, about 42 percent below the previous year and the lowest level since records began in 1988. The space research agency Inpe said the previous record low was 4,571 square kilometres in 2011–12. Environment Minister João Paulo Capobianco described the decline as extraordinary, while President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva reiterated his goal of ending illegal deforestation by 2030. AFP attributed the reduction in part to increased monitoring and tougher penalties for illegal logging.