Amazon deforestation down 31% as Lula makes good on his election promise

Six months into his tenure, Brazil's left-wing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is making good on his election promises. Satellite monitoring has revealed that only 1,989 square kilometres of forest cover was destroyed in Brazil between January-May, down from 2,867 square kilometres during the same period last year.

The 31 per cent decline in deforestation comes as welcome news for environmentalists who were worried about the South American country's dwindling forest cover under former president Jair Bolsonaro.

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One of the biggest poll planks of Lula during the presidential election trail was to protect the Amazons, the indigenous people and keep Brazil corruption free. He faced stiff competition from former president Jair Bolsonaro but managed to achieve a narrow win, before finally clearing several political hurdles to become the top lawmaker.

"We had assumed deforestation at an accelerated rate and we are now managing to invert the curve," saidJoao Paulo Capobianco, deforestation control secretary at Brazil's Environment Ministry.

The Lula administration imposed hefty fines to the tune of$406 million in the first five months of the year which contributed to the fight to protect the environment. The fines imposed saw an uptick of 160 per cent from the annual average figure for the same period during Bolsonaro's four tumultuous years in the office. Additionally, 2,255 farms were slapped with embargoes for environmental wrongdoing.

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Lula faces setbacks

Having kept deforestation in check, Lula, however, is faced with a problem. The recent week was saddled with setbacks for the 'eco-conscious' leader. The conservative-majority Brazilian Senate passed a series of bills that curtail Lula's power to protect Indigenous communities, isolated tribes as well as the environment.

With Lula's power gone, it opens the door to the construction of rampant infrastructure projects in the Amazon,protected indigenous lands that could put the tribal population and their already-dwindling culture in peril. While Lula licks his wounds, Indigenous leaders and environmentalists are worried about the future.

Reality check for Lula

The passing of the bill has come as a reality check for Lula after his idealism collided with political number power. Despite his noble intentions, the truth is that Lula has no base in Congress beyond the left and centre-left parties, experts say. The conservatives used the strength of Congress and managed to pin down Lula.

(With inputs from agencies)

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