A new era in the fight against deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon

The document analyzes the slowdown of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, noting that while overall rates dropped by 83% from 2004 to 2012, progress has stalled. It argues that previous command-and-control measures were more effective for large landowners than for smallholders or those in remote areas. The brief recommends shifting toward incentive-based policies, adopting higher-resolution monitoring technology, and tailoring interventions to specific actor types to achieve Brazil's 2020 deforestation goals.

• Brazil achieved a significant reduction in Amazon deforestation from 2004 to 2012, with an 83% decrease in the annual rate, which helped reduce national greenhouse gas emissions by over one third.
• Between 2004 and 2011, deforestation was primarily driven by large property owners; nearly half (47%) of total deforestation occurred on properties larger than 500 hectares, while smallholders (under 100 ha) were responsible for only 12%.
• Government enforcement and command-and-control measures were more successful in reducing deforestation among large landowners (80-81% decline) than among smallholders (73%) or medium-size properties (65%).
• Forests in areas dominated by smallholders are generally in better ecological condition, exhibiting lower levels of fragmentation and degradation from fire and logging compared to larger properties.
• The share of deforestation occurring in remote regions of the Brazilian Amazon rose from 18.2% in 2004 to 22.6% in 2011, as enforcement efforts focused primarily on identified 'hotspots'.
• Current satellite monitoring is increasingly inadequate as deforestation shifts toward smaller, more dispersed patches to avoid detection, necessitating higher-resolution, radar-based sensors.

APA

Gardner, T. A., & Godar, J. (2014). A new era in the fight against deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PB-2014-Amazon-deforestation.pdf

Chicago

Gardner, Toby A., and Javier Godar. A new era in the fight against deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2014. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PB-2014-Amazon-deforestation.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gardner |first1=Toby A. |last2=Godar |first2=Javier |title=A new era in the fight against deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2014 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PB-2014-Amazon-deforestation.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gardner2014new, author = {Gardner, Toby A. and Godar, Javier}, title = {{A new era in the fight against deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2014}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PB-2014-Amazon-deforestation.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }