Wildfires in Brazil's Amazon Burned the Smallest Area Since 1985 in 2025

Wildfires in Brazil's Amazon rainforest destroyed the smallest area of forest since 1985 this year, according to MapBiomas, an organization that monitors forest cover across Brazil.

MapBiomas coordinator Vera Arruda said the new figures point to significant progress. "The 2025 data show that the scale of fires can be reduced. However, we still cannot say this is a lasting trend, or that we can afford to ease up on prevention measures," she noted.

According to MapBiomas, the improvement was driven largely by cooler, wetter conditions linked to the cooling climate pattern La Niña. However, the organization warns that the return of El Niño this year could extend the dry season and once again raise the risk of large-scale wildfires.

Protecting the Amazon was one of the key campaign pledges made by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva before he took office in 2023. At the time, Lula promised to halt deforestation, which had accelerated sharply under his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro. Observers note that the fresh data on reduced fires will likely be welcomed as good news for the president ahead of October's presidential election.

At the same time, environmental groups point out that Lula has faced criticism for backing oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon River, which they say runs counter to his pledge to protect the world's largest tropical rainforest. The Amazon is considered one of the planet's most important carbon sinks and plays a key role in regulating the global climate.

Around Prague, based on reporting by ekolist.cz