READ ALSO Deter data indicates a reversal in the growth of areas under deforestation alert in the last four months compared to the same period the previous year.

From April to July there was a decrease of 24. In July 444 km² of deforestation were recorded a reduction of 26.Also according to new data from Inpe among the four states of Matopiba only Bahia showed a reduction in deforestation from August 2023 to July 2024 with a drop of 52.In contrast there were increases of 58. 6 in Tocantins 31 in Maranhão and 14. There are people who want to harm the country s image and support deforestation.

These agents who contribute to the increase in deforestation and destruction are present in the government in Congress and even in part of the Supreme Court.

Therefore it is an arduous task for the sectors that work to reduce these numbers maintain the current rates or reduce them even further he argues.

He attributes this situation in part to deforestation authorizations granted by the region s governors which according to him act against environmental preservation and increase deforestation numbers.

Márcio Astrini executive secretary of the Climate Observatory assesses that the government was effective in combating crime but failed to control deforestation in the Cerrado.

In the Cerrado 1 110 326 hectares were deforested in 2023 an increase of 68 compared to 2022 according to data from MapBiomas Annual Deforestation Report RAD 2023.As a result in 2023 the Cerrado was responsible for 61 of deforestation in the country while the Amazon accounted for 25.Furthermore months after the announcement of its resumption the federal government has not yet concluded its specific action plan for the biome Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation and Burning in the Cerrado unlike the Amazon.

This advance brings with it several threats including human rights violations and the loss of biodiversity.

With the arrival of the dry season the propensity for fires increases significantly. In July alone more than half of the fires occurred on the agricultural frontier particularly in the Maranhão and Tocantins he adds.

According to experts the increase in deforestation in the second largest biome in South America is caused by several factors.

Areas with a Rural Environmental Registry CAR lead the alerts for example showing that registered owners also deforest.

The lack of recognition of traditional peoples lands with only 8 of the biome protected also worsens the situation.

In the previous edition this number was 6 341 km² between August 2022 and July 2023. Inpe s historical series for the Cerrado began in 2017.The biome registered a record for deforestation in this last season: 7 015 km² of alerts of deforestation an increase of 9.In the Cerrado which has been recording high rates of deforestation since last year the new Inpe figures paint a completely different picture.

In July however 666 km² of deforestation alerts were registered in the Amazon an increase of 33 compared to the same month in 2023 500 km² after a reduction of 55 compared to July 2022 1 487 km² last year of the Jair Bolsonaro PL government.

With this reduction the rate published this year is the lowest in the biome s entire historical series which began in 2015.The numbers are from the annual report of the Real Time Deforestation Detection System Deter which shows monthly alerts and which already signaled drops in devastation in recent months in the biome.