Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest fell 34 percent in the first half of 2023, preliminary government data shows, hitting its lowest level in four years as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva institutes tougher environmental policies.
Data produced on Thursday by Brazil’s national space research agency Inpe indicated that 2,649sq km (1,023sq miles) of rainforest were cleared in the region in the first half of this year, the lowest level of clearing since 2019.
“It’s very positive, but we continue to have very high levels of deforestation,” said Daniel Silva, an analyst at the nonprofit WWF-Brasil.
Lula, 77, took office in January promising to end deforestation by 2030, after surging destruction under his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, who had slashed environmental protection efforts.
Original from www.aljazeera.com rnrn