How much land is deforested in Brazil each year?

The rate at which land is deforested in Brazil varies from year to year, but in recent decades, the country has experienced significant deforestation. In the 1990s, Brazil lost an average of 2.3 million hectares (5.7 million acres) of forest per year. This rate declined significantly in the early 2000s, but increased again in the late 2000s and early 2010s. In 2012, Brazil lost an estimated 4.6 million hectares (11.4 million acres) of forest.

As a result of this deforestation, Brazil has lost a significant amount of rainforest. The Atlantic Rainforest, which once covered much of the country's eastern coast, has been reduced to only 7% of its original size. The Amazon Rainforest, the largest rainforest in the world, has also been heavily affected by deforestation. Since the 1970s, an area of the Amazon Rainforest larger than the state of California has been cleared.

The primary driver of deforestation in Brazil is the expansion of agriculture, particularly for cattle ranching and soybean farming. The demand for meat, animal feed, and biofuels has led to more and more rainforest being cleared for agricultural use. In addition, logging, mining, and road construction have also contributed to deforestation.

Deforestation has had a number of negative impacts on Brazil, including: loss of biodiversity, soil erosion, water pollution, climate change, and increased vulnerability to natural disasters. It has also had a negative impact on the livelihoods of indigenous people and other traditional forest users.

In response to the high rates of deforestation, the Brazilian government has taken a number of steps to reduce deforestation, including: creating protected areas, enforcing environmental regulations, and providing economic incentives for sustainable land use. These efforts have had some success, but deforestation continues to be a major problem in Brazil.