Data from Imazon indicate that indigenous lands and conservation units are factors in forest protection
Data from the (Amazon Institute of Man and Environment) that, from August 2025 to April 2026, 262 indigenous lands and 220 conservation units recorded zero deforestation in the Amazon. The data is equivalent to 67% of the region’s protected areas. The research company has been monitoring vegetation cover using satellite images since 2008.
In isolation, the month of April 2026 saw 175 km² of forest destroyed. The result is 25% lower than that recorded in the same month of 2025, sustaining the downward trend.
Maranhão recorded the largest proportional increase in deforestation in April 2026 compared to the same month in 2025. The devastated area in the State increased from 2 km² to 5 km², an increase of 150%. Next come Roraima, with growth of 100%, and Pará, with an increase of 62%. Amazonas had the biggest proportional drop, of 59%, going from 93 km² to 38 km².
Across the Amazon, according to the Imazon Deforestation Alert System, forest felling fell by 35% in the 9 months between August 2025 and April 2026. In total, the loss of vegetation totaled 1,635 km², the lowest figure in 8 years for the area.
“Historically, protected areas are the territories that record the least deforestation. Therefore, it is very important that the federal and state governments prioritize public areas with no defined use in the Amazon for the creation of indigenous lands and conservation units, an effective action to reach the goal of zero deforestation in 2030”declared Imazon researcher Larissa Amorim.
