The Senate of Brazil approved Legislation to Preserve Forests

The Senate of Brazil on 7 December 2011 approved the bill that reforms rules on the amount of land farmers must preserve as forest. Brazilian senators voted by 59 to seven to approve the legislation. 

The Key Features of the Bill
• The forest alongside rivers and lakes can be counted by farmers on their land as part of their conserved area. It reduces the total amount of land they need to safeguard or reforest.
• The bill allowed agriculture closer to environmentally fragile areas.
• The bill suspended fines for land cleared illegally before 2008 if farmers sign up to replant trees over the next 20 years.

 Although Brazil needs land for food production, environmentalists warn of increased Amazon destruction. Latest data show tree clearance at its lowest since 1988. As per the data released, there had been an 11% drop in the amount of rainforest cleared between August 2010 and July 2011 compared with the year 2010.