Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell 36.9 percent between August 2025 and July 2026, reaching the lowest level since satellite monitoring began in 2016, according to data released Thursday by the National Institute for Space Research. The Deter alert system recorded 2,874 square kilometres of forest loss, a figure 55.6 percent below the ten-year average.
Most Amazonian states saw sharp declines, led by Mato Grosso at 49 percent and Amazonas at 46.7 percent, though alerts in Roraima rose 32.5 percent. Deforestation also dropped significantly in the Pantanal and Pampa biomes. The Cerrado saw a 7.8 percent reduction over the same period.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who has pledged to eliminate illegal deforestation by 2030, said he would send the findings to the United States as a defence against potential tariffs. The Climate Observatory and IPAM welcomed the results as progress toward that goal. The data follows a peak of 10,278 square kilometres cleared in 2022 under the previous administration.