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Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest fell to its lowest level in a decade, according to official satellite data released Friday, marking the latest significant decline since President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva returned to power.
About 2,874 square kilometres (1,110 square miles) of rainforest were cleared between August 2025 and July 2026, down nearly 37 percent from the previous year, Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE) said.
The latest figure is the lowest recorded since Brazil began monitoring Amazon deforestation through its satellite-based system in 2016.
Lula welcomed the figures, saying they showed Brazil could achieve its goal of ending illegal deforestation by 2030 if it maintained its current efforts and provided sufficient resources.
“The numbers indicate that, if we maintain the current pace, with the seriousness we’ve shown and by providing the necessary resources, we can achieve this,” Lula said while presenting the data in Sao Paulo.
Deforestation in the Amazon accelerated sharply during the administration of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro, reaching a peak of about 12,500 square kilometres in 2022.
Since returning to office, Lula has made curbing illegal logging and protecting the rainforest a central part of his environmental agenda. His government has stepped up enforcement and increased efforts to combat illegal forest clearing.
Lula also linked the government’s environmental policies to the growing threat posed by climate change and extreme weather events.
“In this country we take the climate issue very seriously, because we are not denialists. We are watching things happen,” he said.
The decline in deforestation comes ahead of Brazil’s October presidential election, in which Lula is seeking another term. He faces Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, with recent opinion polls showing Lula holding a narrow lead.
Despite the improvement in Amazon forest protection, Lula’s environmental record has faced criticism from environmental groups over his support for large-scale oil exploration off Brazil’s northern coast, near the mouth of the Amazon River.
The latest figures are nevertheless being viewed as an important sign of progress in Brazil’s efforts to protect the world’s largest tropical rainforest and reduce emissions linked to deforestation.