Key Takeaways
- 17% of all global deforestation occurs in Latin America and the Caribbean, including in the Amazon region
- 8,000 km²/year is an estimate of the Amazon rainforest area lost to deforestation in the 1990s and early 2000s (typical historical figure cited in global assessments)
- 6.0 million ha of forest were lost in Brazil in 2018, with much of the loss associated with the Amazon region
- 6.1 million ha of tree cover loss occurred in the Amazon rainforest biome between 2001 and 2017 (global GLAD-based estimate summarized in research)
- 17% of the Amazon region’s forest cover was lost or degraded relative to 1970–2000 levels in historical analyses (remote sensing-based study metric)
- 28.3% of the Brazilian Amazon’s area is classified as deforestation exposure zones in some risk analyses (risk classification metric)
- Using satellite observations, Hansen et al. found about 17.8 million ha of tree cover loss in the Brazilian Amazon from 2001–2012 (includes deforestation and degradation)
- The Hansen et al. dataset covers 2000–2012 at 30-meter resolution for tree cover loss detection (method specification)
- MODIS-based fire products have a daily temporal resolution, allowing tracking of fire activity associated with deforestation drivers (fire monitoring capability)
- The Amazon has 4,300 known fish species and 1,200 bird species, with deforestation threatening habitat networks (biodiversity baseline cited by WWF)
- 1 in 10 species on Earth live in the Amazon rainforest (biodiversity risk context figure used by conservation organizations)
- 0.5–1.0°C warming could be caused regionally by Amazon deforestation feedbacks (modeling estimate from climate studies)
- Brazil’s cattle herd was about 218 million head in 2022 (IBGE/Pesquisa Pecuária), linked to pasture expansion pressures in the Amazon
- Brazil exported about 8.8 million tonnes of soybeans in 2022 (trade statistic), associated with indirect land-use change risk affecting Amazon regions
- Soy expansion is a leading indirect driver of deforestation risk; global assessments attribute roughly 20–25% of cleared land to soybean/agricultural commodity production (driver share figure)
Brazil’s Amazon and other Latin areas account for major tropical forest loss, driving emissions, fires, and biodiversity decline.
Industry Trends
Industry Trends Interpretation
Deforestation Extent
Deforestation Extent Interpretation
Measurement Methods
Measurement Methods Interpretation
Environmental & Health Impacts
Environmental & Health Impacts Interpretation
Economic & Policy Drivers
Economic & Policy Drivers Interpretation
References
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- 22globalforestwatch.org/dashboards/
- 37globalforestwatch.org/blog/data-and-research/brazil-amazon-deforestation-drivers/
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- 46unfccc.int/king-of-documents
- 47unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement







