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Cattle ranching biggest driver of Amazon deforestation

Amazon Cattle Footprint, Mato Grosso: State of Destruction

January 29, 2009

These Greenpeace maps show that cattle ranching is the primary driver of deforestation in the Amazon state of Mato Grosso.

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Land Use and Slaughterhouses in Mato Grosso

January 29, 2009

This map shows the extent to which cattle pasture is the main use of deforested land in Mato Grosso.

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Slaughterhouses and Roads in Mato Grosso

January 29, 2009

This map shows how the main roads that were opened up in the 1970s link with extensive networks of unofficial roads (not shown on official charts), and how this has led to cattle ranching expanding into remote areas hundreds of kilometres from slaughterhouses.

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Cattle ranching expansion in the Brazilian Amazon

January 29, 2009

Between 1996 and 2006 the area of cattle pastures in the Brazilian Amazon grew by approximately 10 million hectares – an area about the size of Iceland.

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Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon

January 29, 2009

This map shows the extent of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.

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Location of Mato Grosso in the Amazon region

January 29, 2009

The Amazon rainforest is home to the most diverse ecosystem on earth, as well as millions of indigenous peoples. It is under grave threat from being cleared and burned primarily for cattle pastures. Deforestation not only destroys biodiversity and displaces forest peoples but is also responsible for 75% of Brazil’s greenhouse gas emissions, making Brazil the world’s fourth largest climate polluter.

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Original Vegetation in The State of Mato Grosso

January 29, 2009

Original vegetation in the state of Mato Grosso. 185,587km² of the once lush rainforest in the state of Mato Grosso (an area twice the size of Hungary) has so far been destroyed, primarily because of cattle expansion.

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