South America

"After Ecuadorians overwhelmingly voted to ban new oil wells in a prized national park, the government challenged the legitimacy of the referendum and said it would continue drilling."

"Brazilian space research center INPE said on Wednesday that carbon emissions in the Amazon forest soared in 2019 and 2020 compared to the previous decade due to poor enforcement of environmental protection policies."

"Ecuadorean referendums to ban oil drilling in a part of the Amazon and mining in a forest outside Quito easily passed, drawing cheers on Monday from Indigenous leaders and environmentalists despite warnings from oil and mining groups about billions of dollars in lost income."

"On the banks of the Komi Memem River, the activity never ceases: women go down the embankment from Laje Velho village carrying basins to wash clothing, while men embark in small canoes on hunting and fishing expeditions. At day’s end, it’s the children’s turn to dive into its tea-colored waters."

"The eight countries that share the Amazon basin have fallen short of an agreed goal to end deforestation. ... A joint declaration on Tuesday created an alliance to combat deforestation, but left each country to pursue its own conservation goals."

"The Amazon rainforest is a massive area, twice the size of India and sprawling across eight countries and one territory. It’s a crucial carbon sink for the climate, has about 20% of the world’s freshwater reserves and boasts astounding biodiversity, including 16,000 known tree species."

"When the presidents of Amazon nations including Brazil, Peru and Colombia meet at a regional summit next week, they will train their sights on a new breed of criminal just as comfortable chopping down the rainforest as shipping drugs overseas."

"There are now more golden lion tamarins bounding between branches in the Brazilian rainforest than at any time since efforts to save the species started in the 1970s, a new survey reveals."

"Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon fell 34% in the first half of 2023, preliminary government data showed on Thursday, hitting its lowest level in four years as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva institutes tougher environmental policies."