Brazil and Colombia curbed logging in 2023, but other countries wiped out many of the gains
Observers say government action in Colombia has led to a reduction in primary forest loss.
The number of trees lost in tropical forests in Brazil and Colombia fell dramatically last year because of political action, a new analysis finds.
Fires in northern forest areas have a huge impact on the overall global picture of tree cover loss, according to analysts from the University of Maryland's GLAD lab and the World Resources Institute who publish annual data on forest felling.
The return to government of President Lula has coincided with a dramatic drop in forest losses in Brazil.
In 2023, the tropics saw 3.7 million hectares of forest lost - equivalent to 10 football fields per minute, a slight decline on last year.
These losses would have been far higher if it wasn't for Brazil and Colombia.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva came to power in Brazil last year promising to tackle tree losses and end deforestation by 2030.
As a result, there has been a 36% drop in primary forest losses in Brazil in 2023, compared to 2022."I think what we're seeing in Brazil, for example, is really a case of putting law enforcement back in place that was dismantled during the previous government," said Rod Taylor from WRI.Given that Brazil was responsible for 43% of all tropical forest loss in 2022, this reduction is significant.
Not all the forested regions of Brazil saw reductions.
Colombia also saw a significant decline with primary forest loss down by almost half compared to 2022.Observers say the actions of President Gustavo Petro Urrego have played an important role in the fall.