Here we present an updated analysis on the Amazon fires, as part of our ongoing coverage and building off what we reported in MAAP #107. First, we show an updated Base Map of the “fire hotspots” across the Amazon, based on very recent fire alerts (August 20-26). Hotspots (shown in red, orange, and yellow) indicate the highest concentrations of […]
Following up on the current fires in the Amazon forests of Brazil, Bolivia, and Peru, we want to share with you our latest analysis of the situation. Please see today’s MAAP report, which provides real-time satellite data of the region and shows up-close satellite images of what the fires actually look like across all three countries, […]
The fires in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil and Bolivia have been burning for three weeks now. Thousands of acres of forests have been lost. Although Amazon Conservation cannot stop the current fires from happening – at this point, only national and local authorities can – we can help prevent them from happening. We are doing […]
Fires now burning in the Amazon, particularly Brazil and Bolivia, have become headline news and a viral topic on social media. Yet little information exists on the impact on the Amazon rainforest itself, as many of the detected fires originate in or near agricultural lands. Here, we advance the discussion on the impact of the fires by presenting the first Base Map of current […]
We continue our focus on the northwest Colombian Amazon,* one of the most intense deforestation hotspots in the western Amazon (see MAAP# 100). Here, we analyze deforestation data over the past five years (2015-19) to better understand current trends and patterns. We found a major increase in deforestation as of 2016. The Colombian Amazon lost nearly 1.2 million acres (478,000 hectares) of forest […]
Amazon Conservation, in collaboration with its Peruvian sister organization, is implementing a project aimed at linking cutting-edge technology (satellites and drones) with legal action, in the southern Peruvian Amazon (Madre de Dios region). The project is building a comprehensive deforestation monitoring system with a local group of forestry concessionaires, known as ACOMAT,* who manage over 486,000 acres (see Base […]
The rainforest is a highly diverse and complex ecosystem, of which only a very small percentage is known. Because the impact of different disturbances within it is not fully understood, protecting its integrity should be the end goal. However, the threats affecting this ecosystem are only increasing over time, including deforestation and mercury pollution caused […]
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change, has released a new report on the intersection of climate change and land use. The report analyzed over 7,000 scientific publications on the topics of land-climate interactions, including land degradation, desertification, and food security. It found that changes […]
In February 2019, the Peruvian government launched Operation Mercury (Operación Mercurio), a major multi-sectoral crackdown on the illegal gold mining crisis in the area known as La Pampa,* located in the southern Peruvian Amazon (Madre de Dios region). Note that this area is not within Tambopata National Reserve, but in its buffer zone. In this report, we present the […]
Earlier this year, the government of Peru launched a multi-sectoral and comprehensive mega-operation aimed at eradicating illegal mining and associated crime in La Pampa, Peru, called Operation Mercury. The operation came about in part after Amazon Conservation, through our real-time monitoring program, provided the Peruvian government with key information on the location of illegal mining camps […]