Preserving the Amazon: Strategies to Reduce Deforestation in Rural Settlements

The report finds that deforestation in the Amazon's rural settlements is highly concentrated, with 5% of settlements accounting for 17% of the biome's total deforestation between 2012 and 2022. It argues that targeting a small group of persistent high-deforestation settlements, often located near federal highways, offers a high-impact opportunity for forest preservation. The authors recommend a combination of strengthened environmental monitoring and enforcement by IBAMA, alongside sustainable incentives such as payments for environmental services (PES) and forest restoration initiatives.

• Rural settlements in the Amazon are disproportionately affected by deforestation; while they occupy only 8% of the biome, they were responsible for 28% of all deforestation between 2012 and 2022.
• Deforestation is highly concentrated in a small number of settlements. Between 2012 and 2022, 116 projects (5% of settlements) caused 17% of the biome's deforestation, with 75% of forest loss in settlements occurring in just 5% of the 2,312 settlements in 2022.
• Deforestation patterns in these settlements are persistent and spatially concentrated, frequently occurring near federal highways.
• There is a correlation between high-deforestation settlements and large-scale agriculture, as 36% of deforestation in the top 116 settlements in 2022 occurred in areas over 100 hectares, compared to only 4% in other settlements.
• Environmental enforcement has declined while deforestation in settlements has risen; between 2016 and 2022, fines for flora infractions dropped by 56% while deforestation in settlements increased by 48%.
• Sustainable incentives, specifically payments for environmental services (PES) and technical assistance, have been shown to increase production while reducing deforestation among rural settlers.
• The Amazon's rural settlements show significant potential for forest restoration, with approximately 2.1 million hectares of secondary vegetation naturally regenerating by 2019, representing nearly 25% of the total deforested area in these settlements.

APA

Mourão, J., Sessim, M., & Souza, P. (2023). Preserving the Amazon: Strategies to Reduce Deforestation in Rural Settlements. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Preserving-the-Amazon.pdf

Chicago

Mourão, João, Marcelo Sessim, and Priscila Souza. Preserving the Amazon: Strategies to Reduce Deforestation in Rural Settlements. Climate Policy Initiative, 2023. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Preserving-the-Amazon.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Mourão |first1=João |last2=Sessim |first2=Marcelo |last3=Souza |first3=Priscila |title=Preserving the Amazon: Strategies to Reduce Deforestation in Rural Settlements |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=September 2023 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Preserving-the-Amazon.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mouro2023preserving, author = {Mourão, João and Sessim, Marcelo and Souza, Priscila}, title = {{Preserving the Amazon: Strategies to Reduce Deforestation in Rural Settlements}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2023}, month = sep, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Preserving-the-Amazon.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }