Brazil loses vast natural areas as El Niño threat grows

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A new study found that Brazil has lost native vegetation covering an area more than twice the size of France during the past four decades, making the country more vulnerable to El Niño-related extreme weather.

According to the annual study conducted by the environmental monitoring network MapBiomas, native vegetation covered 79% of Brazil's land in 1985 but has since decreased to approximately 65%. The greatest losses have happened in the Amazon rainforest and the biodiverse Cerrado savanna.

Much of the cleared land has been converted to agricultural and cattle, which currently account for over 32% of Brazil, up from 18% in 1985. El Niño episodes can have a greater impact on transformed environments, according to researchers.

During the 2023-24 El Niño, deforested regions of the Amazon got lower rainfall compared to forested areas, while agricultural districts in southern Brazil received more rain. Rio Grande do Sul was devastated by terrible floods in 2024, killing around 200 individuals.

According to researchers, changes in land use might intensify the local impacts of El Niño, rather than generate it. In the Amazon, deforestation affects evaporation and local humidity, potentially raising temperatures and decreasing rainfall.

Brazil is bracing for a potentially major El Niño, with Pacific Ocean temperatures expected to soar more than 2°C above average. The agriculture sector has warned that the phenomena could have a significant impact on major crops such as coffee, soybeans, and sugar.