The forest breathes easier: Amazon deforestation falls 41.8% in a record drop

Brazil's official satellite data shows deforestation in the Amazon fell 41.8% in the year to July 2026 — the biggest drop since records began in 1988 — while clearing in the Cerrado savanna fell 23.8%. Tighter monitoring and stiffer penalties for illegal logging helped drive the fall, and climate advocates called it a historic achievement for the world's largest rainforest, which soaks up vast amounts of planet-warming carbon.

SDG 15 · Life on land — Mechanism: policy reform