PRECISAMOS FALAR SOBRE DEGRADAÇÃO FLORESTAL NA AMAZÔNIA

This policy brief by the Climate Policy Initiative argues that forest degradation in the Amazon is a critical but overlooked threat to climate goals. It highlights that degradation often causes more biomass loss and carbon emissions than clear-cutting deforestation, yet it remains largely absent from Brazil's official environmental metrics and greenhouse gas inventories.

• Forest degradation is a distinct phenomenon from clear-cutting deforestation, characterized by a partial loss of vegetation that undermines the forest's ability to store carbon and conserve biodiversity. Between 2003 and 2014, degraded tropical forests are estimated to have accounted for nearly 70% of global carbon emissions from tropical forests, with deforestation accounting for the remaining 30%.
• In the Brazilian Amazon, forest degradation is a severe threat that often affects an area as large as or larger than that affected by deforestation annually. Between 2010 and 2019, degradation is estimated to have represented three-quarters of the gross biomass loss in the region, while deforestation represented only one-quarter.
• There are three primary drivers of forest degradation in the Amazon: selective extraction of native species, fire, and the effects of deforestation itself. Selective extraction causes damage through access roads and falling trees; fire destroys fragile plants and reduces overall resilience; and deforestation creates new forest frontiers exposed to atypical temperature, light, and wind conditions.
• Despite having the technical capacity and monitoring systems to detect degradation, Brazil largely ignores it in its environmental performance metrics and greenhouse gas inventories. Furthermore, no Amazonian country reports emissions from forest degradation or has established goals to reduce them, despite the UNFCCC's support for REDD+ mechanisms.

APA

Gandour, C. (2022). PRECISAMOS FALAR SOBRE DEGRADAÇÃO FLORESTAL NA AMAZÔNIA. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Precisamos-Falar-Sobre-Degradacao-Florestal-na-Amazonia.pdf

Chicago

Gandour, Clarissa. PRECISAMOS FALAR SOBRE DEGRADAÇÃO FLORESTAL NA AMAZÔNIA. Climate Policy Initiative, 2022. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Precisamos-Falar-Sobre-Degradacao-Florestal-na-Amazonia.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gandour |first1=Clarissa |title=PRECISAMOS FALAR SOBRE DEGRADAÇÃO FLORESTAL NA AMAZÔNIA |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=August 2022 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Precisamos-Falar-Sobre-Degradacao-Florestal-na-Amazonia.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gandour2022precisamos, author = {Gandour, Clarissa}, title = {{PRECISAMOS FALAR SOBRE DEGRADAÇÃO FLORESTAL NA AMAZÔNIA}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2022}, month = aug, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Precisamos-Falar-Sobre-Degradacao-Florestal-na-Amazonia.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }