(Reuters) – Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon fell 66.11% in August to its lowest level for the month since 2018, Environment Minister Marina Silva said yesterday, in a significant mark for its environmental policy as destruction often spikes this time of year.
Satellite data from Brazilian space research agency INPE indicated that 563 square km (217.38 square miles) of rainforest were cleared in the month, a 66.1% drop from the same period a year ago.
In the first eight months of the year, INPE’s figures showed, deforestation has fallen a cumulative 48% from the same period of 2022.
The data give President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva reasons to cheer as he has promised to end deforestation in the region by 2030 after destruction surged under his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, who slashed environmental protection efforts.
Earlier, Lula celebrated the decline, saying on social media that it is a “result of the great work of the Environment Ministry and the federal government.”
Some experts feared the significant drop of more than 40% in deforestation seen in the first seven months of Lula’s administration could have been put at risk by higher destruction in August and September, when the weather turns drier.
Initial signs, however, are that those concerns did not materialize.