New study of Amazon forest carbon reveals indigenous territories, protected areas continue to outperform other lands, limiting net emissions; evidence shows forest growth compensates for newly-detected degradation
Scientists call for ramping up support to protect significant buffer against climate change in Amazon; findings suggest failure to uphold indigenous rights, laws endangering forests, as global demand grows for mineral wealth, fuel, commodities
In a paper published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers analyzed the impact of forest conversion as well as degradation and disturbance on four land categories in the Amazon (ITs, PNAs, Other Land, and the overlap between ITs and PNAs), finding that forest growth helped indigenous territories show the lowest net loss of carbon, with 90 percent of net emissions coming from outside protected lands.