--- description: Clearance has fallen to its second lowest level in 25 years, according to the country's Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira title: Deforestation Eases in Brazilian Amazon image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt869d8fbdf9cb4670/69876b54524fc03a03deb03b/rtx159yi.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Environment](/tag/environment/) ## Environment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon Is Easing Up by [Per Liljas](/author/per-liljas/) ## Per Liljas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 27, 2014 3:30 AM CUT  An aerial view of a tract of the Amazon jungle recently cleared by loggers and farmers near the Brazilian city of Novo Progresso, Pará state, on Sept. 22, 2013 An aerial view of a tract of the Amazon jungle recently cleared by loggers and farmers near the Brazilian city of Novo Progresso, Pará state, on Sept. 22, 2013© Nacho Doce / Reuters—REUTERS by [Per Liljas](/author/per-liljas/) ## Per Liljas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Nov 27, 2014 3:30 AM CUT Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest has fallen to its [second lowest level](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/27662c4b95ee4e75adbdb02bba82f05e/deforestation-drops-brazils-amazon "undefined") in 25 years, according to the country’s Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira. Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Teixeira said 4,848 sq km of forest were cut down between August 2013 and July 2014, compared with 5,891 sq km during the same period a year earlier, the Associated Press reports. The drop is a surprise, since environmental groups have been warning of an increase following the adoption of a controversial 2012 bill that eases clearing restrictions for small landowners. “The major message is O.K., is good: Brazil has been advancing,” says Marco Lentini, coordinator of the Amazon program for WWF’s Brazil branch, while cautioning: “It doesn’t mean that the deforestation issue is over.” The Amazon rainforest, considered an essential natural defense against global warming, is gradually being razed to make way for cattle grazing, soy plantations and logging. Sixty percent of the forest is found in Brazil, which has pledged to reduce deforestation to 3,900 sq km per year by 2020. \[[_AP_](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/27662c4b95ee4e75adbdb02bba82f05e/deforestation-drops-brazils-amazon "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3608454/deforestation-brazil-amazon-second-lowest-level/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3608454/deforestation-brazil-amazon-second-lowest-level/"},"headline":"Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon Is Easing Up","datePublished":"2014-11-27T03:30:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T02:25:22.429Z","description":"In fact, it just fell to its second lowest level in 25 years","url":"https://time.com/3608454/deforestation-brazil-amazon-second-lowest-level/","keywords":["Environment","climate change","global warming","brazil","latin america","Deforestation"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt869d8fbdf9cb4670/69876b54524fc03a03deb03b/rtx159yi.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Per Liljas","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/per-liljas/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt869d8fbdf9cb4670/69876b54524fc03a03deb03b/rtx159yi.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"An aerial view of a tract of Amazon jungle recently cleared by loggers and farmers near the city of Novo Progresso","caption":"An aerial view of a tract of Amazon jungle recently cleared by loggers and farmers near the city of Novo Progresso","creditText":"© Nacho Doce / Reuters—REUTERS","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3608454/deforestation-brazil-amazon-second-lowest-level/","name":"Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon Is Easing Up"}}]}] ```