Strengthening Brazil’s Forest Protection in a Changing Landscape

This policy brief by the Climate Policy Initiative analyzes a shift in Brazilian Amazon deforestation from large-scale to small-scale clearings between 2004 and 2012. It argues that while conservation policies successfully reduced overall deforestation, they created a blind spot for clearings of 25 hectares or less, leading landholders in states like Mato Grosso and Pará to adapt their practices to avoid detection.

• Annual deforestation rates in the Brazilian Amazon decreased by nearly 80% between 2004 and 2012, dropping from 27,000 km2 in 2004 to 4,500 km2 in 2012. This reduction is attributed in part to conservation policies introduced in 2004, including a remote sensing-based monitoring and enforcement program.
• A technical limitation in the remote sensing monitoring system prevents the detection of deforestation on areas measuring 25 hectares or less. Consequently, small-scale clearings have grown from representing 25% to more than 50% of overall annual clearings.
• In Mato Grosso, property holders shifted from medium- and large-scale clearings to smaller tracts to evade the remote-enforcement program. In Pará, small-size property holders (smallholders) emerged as the primary agents of forest clearing, as they were historically more engaged in small-scale deforestation and thus more likely to elude monitoring.
• The document recommends that policymakers adapt by creating strategies specifically targeting small-scale deforestation, enhancing remote sensing technology to detect smaller clearings, and tailoring policies to specific locales to account for regional differences.

APA

Climate Policy Initiative (2015). Strengthening Brazil’s Forest Protection in a Changing Landscape. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/strengthening-brazils-forest-protection-in-a-changing-landscape/

Chicago

Climate Policy Initiative. Strengthening Brazil’s Forest Protection in a Changing Landscape. 2015. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/strengthening-brazils-forest-protection-in-a-changing-landscape/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Policy Initiative |title=Strengthening Brazil’s Forest Protection in a Changing Landscape |date=17 August 2015 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/strengthening-brazils-forest-protection-in-a-changing-landscape/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatepolicyinitiative2015strengthening, author = {{Climate Policy Initiative}}, title = {{Strengthening Brazil’s Forest Protection in a Changing Landscape}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2015}, month = aug, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/strengthening-brazils-forest-protection-in-a-changing-landscape/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }