Deforestation in Cerrado falls 48% in January

In January 2024, deforestation in the Cerrado decreased by 48 percent compared to December 2023, reaching 51,000 hectares. This reduction can be attributed to several factors, including the effectiveness of public policies aimed at combating biome degradation and the significant volume of rainfall, which helps experts identify open areas more easily.

According to the Cerrado Deforestation Alert System (SAD Cerrado), operated by the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), the rate of deforestation in January this year was the lowest in the past 11 months. However, it was still 10 percent higher than in January 2023, when the biome lost 46,000 hectares of native vegetation.

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SAD Cerrado provides information from European Space Agency satellites and serves as a complementary tool to Deter Cerrado, a system operated by the National Institute for Space Research (INPE).

As in previous analysis periods, the Matopiba region, encompassing the states of Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí, and Bahia, accounted for the majority of last month’s deforestation rate (64%). A total of 33,000 hectares of this area were cleared during this period.

Outside the Matopiba region, the states of Minas Gerais and Mato Grosso do Sul stood out for the increase in deforested vegetation. Together, they recorded 8,000 hectares cleared, marking a 23 percent increase compared to January 2023.

Land vacancies

The updated report highlights the relationship between land status and deforestation rates. Land vacancies, referring to areas without ownership or defined governance mechanisms, were the second most deforested category, accounting for 11 percent of alerts. Private areas took first place, with over 74 percent cleared, totaling around 38,000 hectares.

From December 2023 to January 2024, deforestation in Conservation Units reached 5,000 hectares, representing 9 percent of the total. Among the protected areas, the most affected were those located in Matopiba, such as the Parnaíba River Springs National Park in Piauí and the Serra da Ibiapaba Environmental Protection Area in Ceará.