News Atlas

BBCOct 17Preview

Brazil sees record fall in Amazon deforestation as key election looms

The Amazon rainforest is a crucial buffer against climate change - but deforestation had expanded under former president Jair Bolsonaro.

GuardianOct 16Preview

Brazilian Amazon deforestation falls to lowest on record as pivotal vote looms

Forest clearance at smallest total since records began in 1988 in success for Lula ahead of presidential run-offDeforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen to its lowest level since records began, new government data shows.But whether this globally important success is maintained or reversed is on a knife edge ahead of a presidential election run-off on 25 October between two candidates with sharply different visions for the future of the rainforest and how that affects relations with the US under Donald Trump. Continue reading...

Jonathan WattsAmazon rainforestDeforestation

GuardianOct 16Preview

Revealed: VW, Ford and Tesla batteries linked to destructive deforestation of indigenous lands

Mines in supply chains of western carmakers linked to widespread deforestation of primary rainforest in nickel-rich lands inhabited by Tolaki people in IndonesiaVolkswagen, Ford and Tesla are among the electric carmakers whose batteries may contain nickel mined in indigenous woodlands plagued by deforestation, an analysis has found, highlighting the struggle to make vehicles that are free from environmental destruction.Corporate disclosures and trade flows from the last two years show mines in the battery supply chains of automotive giants are linked to the loss of trees in Sulawesi, a wildlife hotspot in Indonesia that houses the world’s largest nickel deposits. The metal is widely used in cathodes in car batteries because it boosts energy density and increases range. Continue reading...

Stefano Valentino in Sulawesi and Ajit NiranjanMiningDeforestation