Mongabay · Climate & nature

Brazil Establishes Amazon Reserves Amid Highway Paving Plans

Brazil has created four new sustainable development reserves in the Amazon rainforest, totaling over 668,000 hectares, as a measure to offset environmental concerns related to the planned paving of the BR-319 highway.

The reserves will operate under a sustainable-use model, allowing existing residents to remain and continue extracting forest products. This initiative aims to balance the highway's development with environmental protection and sustainable economic growth in the region.

Managed by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation, the reserves will also include buffer zones around three of the largest areas, adding another 109,718 hectares under some protection, though mining may be permitted in these buffer zones.

The BR-319 highway, originally built in the 1970s, connects Manaus and Porto Velho. Its middle section is often impassable during the rainy season. Speculation about repaving under the previous administration fueled a significant increase in deforestation.

Deforestation rates have reportedly decreased since the exit of the former administration, but concerns about on-the-ground enforcement persist in the Amazon.

Experts caution that creating conservation units alone is insufficient. They highlight that the Chico Mendes Institute's budget is inadequate for effective implementation and that concrete plans for enforcement in the region have not been demonstrated.

AI-samenvatting op basis van de bron.