crn-3076-sp-f7c25403a7bb1af7.pdf

This report describes a five-year interdisciplinary study, co-funded by the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), on the environmental and public health impacts of road construction in pristine rainforests, focusing primarily on the Brazil-Peru Interoceanic Highway.

• The construction of the 2,600-kilometer Brazil-Peru Interoceanic Highway between 2002 and 2011 has led to biodiversity loss and changes in fauna dynamics due to human-driven land-use changes, despite providing economic benefits and improvements in food and health infrastructure.
• Road construction alters the distribution and composition of wild rodents, increasing the risk of zoonotic disease transmission to nearby human populations. A study of 97 rodents from 11 species collected between 2014 and 2015 found that 78% were positive for Bartonella and 24% for Leptospira, bacteria that can cause fatal infectious diseases.
• There is a significant gap in public health awareness in the Madre de Dios region of Peru; 90% of survey respondents who had seen rodents near their homes could not name the diseases these animals transmit, despite local reports that rodent populations have increased since the highway's construction.
• Local populations perceive a mix of positive and negative impacts from the highway. Positive effects include better medical care, food variety, employment, and cultural exchange. Negative effects include road accidents, increased disease risk, drug and sex trafficking, food and water contamination, soil depletion, flooding, and biodiversity loss caused largely by illegal gold mining.
• The researchers recommend implementing comprehensive public health strategies adapted to habitat transformation, collaborating with community leaders to foster empowerment, and establishing land-use public policies before ecosystem intervention.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (n.d.). crn-3076-sp-f7c25403a7bb1af7.pdf. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/CRN-3076-sp.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. crn-3076-sp-f7c25403a7bb1af7.pdf. n.d. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/CRN-3076-sp.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=crn-3076-sp-f7c25403a7bb1af7.pdf |url=https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/CRN-3076-sp.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearchndcrn3076spf7c25403a7bb1af7pdf, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{crn-3076-sp-f7c25403a7bb1af7.pdf}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, url = {https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/CRN-3076-sp.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }