Brazilian voters gave environmentalists the result they were hoping for. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has won another term as president, and scientists say it means four more years of aggressive efforts to slow the destruction of the Amazon, about 60 percent of which is in Brazil. Under Lula, forest loss declined sharply as his government restored law enforcement, set a goal of ending illegal deforestation by 2030, and pledged to replant millions of acres of rainforest, the New York Times reports.
Climate experts had warned that a victory for his opponent Flávio Bolsonaro, who questions man-made climate change and supports the expansion of agriculture and mining in the region, could cause an increase in deforestation. Indigenous leaders who campaigned against him also welcomed Lula’s victory. “Protecting these ecosystems is important well beyond Brazil’s borders and is essential to halting the loss of biodiversity worldwide,” said Camila Jardim of Greenpeace Brazil, according to Euronews. Still, a more right-wing Congress that takes office next year could obstruct Lula’s environmental agenda, limiting his presidency to a monitoring role.
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