Fires in the Brazilian Amazon have fallen to their lowest level since 1985

Only 3,1 million hectares burned in the Amazon in 2025, compared to 15,8 million the previous year. This historic decline coincides with President Lula's re-election campaign.

This is a figure that rainforest advocates have long awaited. According to the monitoring group MapBiomas, the area burned in the Brazilian Amazon in 2025 represents the smallest extent recorded since it began its surveys in 1985. The 3,1 million hectares that went up in smoke last year contrast sharply with the 15,8 million hectares in 2024, a record year.

Across Brazil, the trend is the same: approximately 12,7 million hectares burned in 2025, compared to 30 million in 2024. The historical national peak dates back to 2007, with 30,7 million hectares affected across the entire territory.

Researcher Vera Arruda, from the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM) and coordinator at MapBiomas, welcomed these results while urging caution. "The 2025 figures are significant and show that it is possible to reduce the area burned in the country," she stated. She nevertheless emphasized that "the 31% decrease compared to the historical average, driven primarily by the lowest number of fires recorded in the Amazon in 41 years, is good news, but does not yet allow us to conclude that this is an established trend or to relax prevention efforts."

This decline is partly explained by the return of cooler La Niña weather patterns, following the El Niño event that exacerbated droughts in 2024. The Copernicus Climate Change Service attributed that year's record-breaking fires to "climate extremes and human activity." MapBiomas, however, warns that a return of El Niño could lengthen the dry season this year and increase the risk of fires.

These results come at a crucial time for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is seeking re-election in the October presidential election. Upon taking office on January 1, 2023, he declared his goal of achieving "zero deforestation in the Amazon," a clear break from his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro, under whom forest destruction had increased by 75% during the third year of his term.

Lula's Amazon policy is not without its critics. His decision to authorize oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon River has sparked strong protests from environmental groups, who see it as a blatant contradiction with his commitments to protecting the region.