As national policymakers begin the global COP28 climate summit in Dubai, we provide here a concise update on the current state of Amazon forest loss and remaining carbon reserves, both based on the latest cutting-edge data. For Amazon forest loss, we analyze the primary forest loss alerts known as GLAD-S2, which are based on 10-meter […]
In the context of overall Amazon gold mining, where illegal mining is rampant, southern Peru is an important case study given that the government has created the “Mining Corridor“, where mining is allowed in order to organize and promote this activity. In this large area, officially known as the “Zone of small-scale and artisanal mining […]
As we approach the COP28 climate summit, starting in Dubai in late November, we provide here a concise update on the current state of remaining Amazon carbon reserves. We present the newly updated version of NASA’s GEDI data1, which uses lasers aboard the International Space Station to provide cutting-edge estimates of aboveground biomass density on […]
Illegal Gold Mining continues to be one of the major issues facing nearly all Amazonian countries. In fact, following the recent high-level summit of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization, the nations’ leaders signed the Belém Declaration, which contains a commitment to prevent and combat illegal mining, including strengthened regional and international cooperation (Objective 32). Illegal […]
In a series of reports, we have documented the recent massive deforestation by Mennonite colonies in the Peruvian Amazon (see MAAP #188). Here, we present additional evidence that Mennonites are currently clearing primary Amazon forests: very high-resolution satellite imagery (0.5 meters from Planet’s Skysat fleet). Specifically, we compare a series of very high-resolution satellite images tasked over the same area on different […]
Starting in 2017, new Mennonite colonies began appearing in the Peruvian Amazon, coming from other parts of Latin America in search of new lands. TheMennonites, a global religious group dating back to the 1600s, often require vast tracts of land to support their characteristic large-scale, industrialized agricultural activity. In a series of reports, we have demonstrated […]
The Amazon fire season is well under way: to date, we have detected over 260 major fires thus far in 2023 (see Base Map below). This year is of special concern because scientists indicate we have entered a new El Niño episode. The most intense Amazon fire seasons on record, 2016 and 2017, immediately followed […]
We present a detailed look at the major 2022 Amazon forest loss hotspots, based on the final annual data recently released by the University of Maryland (and featured on Global Forest Watch). This dataset is unique in that it is consistent across all nine countries of the Amazon, and distinguishes forest loss from fire, leaving the rest as […]
Gold mining continues to be one of the main causes of deforestation in the southern Peruvian Amazon, especially in the Madre de Dios region. Here, we provide a comprehensive look at the most recent (2021-2022) gold mining-related deforestation in the area, combining two important types of data for the first time: Deforestation within the Mining […]
As deforestation continues to threaten primary forest across the Amazon, key land use designations are one of the best hopes for the long-term conservation of critical remaining intact forests. Here, we evaluate the impact of two of the most important: protected areas & indigenous territories. Our study looked across all nine countries of the Amazon biome, a vast […]
