Mongabay has reported that Brazil, Bolivia, and four other Latin American countries were among the ten with the greatest tropical primary forest loss in 2024.
New data from the University of Maryland showed that global tropical primary forest loss reached 6.7 million hectares, 80% higher than in 2023.
In the Amazon, primary forest loss increased by 110% compared to the previous year.
The World Resources Institute (WRI) said this was the largest rise since 2016.
WRI forests program director Rod Taylor said: “It’s a really worrying shift.”
Taylor said: “You go to the rainforest these days and there is barely any water anymore. Rainforests, once too humid to burn, are becoming tinder-dry and flammable.
“Fires are almost entirely human-caused. But their spread is increasingly linked to drought.”
Fundación Amigos de la Naturaleza said more than 60% of Bolivia’s primary forest loss in 2024 was caused by fire.
The Bolivian NGO said this included fires that destroyed nearly 11.5% of the country’s land area.
Marlene Quintanilla Palacios, director of research and knowledge management at the NGO, said: “It is the worst environmental disaster we have ever lived.”
From 2023 to 2024, Bolivia saw a 200% increase in forest loss, according to the GFW data reviewed by Mongabay.
Bolivian environmental economist Stasiek Czaplicki Cabezas said fire spread has become more erratic and harder to control.
He said: “Fires increasingly have a life of their own.”
Quintanilla Palacios said: “Fire is the cheapest way of clearing land. But fire can be as deadly a trigger as deforestation.”
She added that changes in population location and land connection are affecting forest protection.
She said: “Fifty years ago, about two-thirds of the population lived in the Bolivian highlands. Today, some 50-60% live in the forested lowlands.
“They’re more likely to clear the forest because they lack the same connection to the land as the original Indigenous people.”
Local experts told Mongabay that Bolivia’s fire management policy is reactive and focused on response rather than prevention.
Quintanilla Palacios said: “There is no proactive management… the government took action very late.”
Illegal deforestation reportedly goes largely unpunished.
Czaplicki Cabezas said: “People know nothing ever happens, there are no sanctions. Fines are ridiculously low.”
He added that government policies promote deforestation through expansion targets and weakened legal protections for forests.
According to Quintanilla Palacios, Bolivia’s conservation funding relies heavily on international donations, which are not always directed to areas of greatest need.
Czaplicki Cabezas said border regions receive little investment and that NGOs avoid working where “they may not be able to deliver fast results.”
The Indigenous territory of Charagua Iyambae was noted as an exception, preventing wildfires for a second year in a row using early-warning systems.
Czaplicki Cabezas said: “We can learn something from Indigenous governance.”
In 2024, Mexico lost nearly twice as much tropical primary forest as in 2023, mostly due to wildfires, according to GFW.
Mongabay reported that more than 8,000 wildfires affected over 1.67 million hectares of land, the largest area burned since records began in 1998.
However, Mexico’s National Forestry Commission (CONAFOR) may still report an overall drop in deforestation due to differences in measurement methods.
CONAFOR uses a sampling approach to estimate national deforestation trends, while GFW tracks direct primary forest loss using satellite imagery.
Sergio Humberto Graf Montero, director-general of CONAFOR, said: “Fires don’t generate deforestation.”
He said: “Vegetation cover can change, but that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s deforestation.
“Fires can occur naturally in temperate forests and are closely linked with climate change and prolonged droughts.
“An absolute fire suppression policy in areas where fire is natural can result in more catastrophic fires.”
Graf Montero stated that cattle ranching remains the largest driver of deforestation in Mexico.
He said the government aims to establish a “deforestation-free corridor” and stop deforestation entirely between 2024 and 2030.
Mongabay reported that tropical forest loss in Guyana quadrupled in 2024 compared to the previous year.
More than half of this loss was attributed to wildfires.
The Cuyuni-Mazaruni region saw the highest losses, linked to both fire and gold mining.
Mining is responsible for around 35% of Guyana’s primary forest loss over the last 24 years.
According to SOS Orinoco, the mining footprint in Essequibo is now nearly double that of Venezuela’s Bolívar state.
The group said: “The Guyanese state has laws that promote mining and it does not have legislation that protects the forest areas and fragile lands from this devastating activity.”
It added: “There are barely any local NGOs holding the government accountable.”
GFW data reported by Mongabay showed that Brazil accounted for 42% of global primary forest loss in 2024.
Brazil saw a 150% increase in forest loss compared to 2023.
In Colombia, forest loss rose by 50% in 2024 following a sharp drop in 2023.
Deforestation in Colombia was tied to the breakdown of peace negotiations with armed groups.
Joaquín Carrizosa, senior adviser at WRI Colombia, said: “Deforestation has become a currency.”
He added: “Colombia suffers from a lack of governance. There are more killings of environmental defenders than in any other country.
“This breaks the social fabric and makes forest conservation even harder.”
Carrizosa said Colombia has shown improvement is possible, but governance challenges persist.
He said: “Deforestation is not a natural phenomenon.”
Brazil, Bolivia, and Mexico experienced the highest levels of tropical primary forest loss in 2024.
Data from the University of Maryland showed a global increase of 80% in tropical forest loss compared to 2023.
In Bolivia, over 60% of forest loss was caused by wildfires, according to Fundación Amigos de la Naturaleza.
Experts said Bolivia’s government response was delayed and ineffective, and that illegal deforestation goes largely unpunished.
Mexico saw over 1.67 million hectares burned in 2024, the largest area since 1998.
CONAFOR said only 5% of tree cover was affected by fire and identified cattle ranching as the main driver of deforestation.
In Guyana, forest loss quadrupled due to wildfires and increased gold mining activity.
SOS Orinoco said the Guyanese government lacks forest protection laws and promotes extractive industries.
Brazil accounted for 42% of all global tropical primary forest loss in 2024.
Colombia’s forest loss rose 50% amid conflict with armed groups and failed peace negotiations.
WRI said data availability could support policy reform and investment in forest conservation.
