Loss of Habitats
The main threat to Cerrado biodiversity is deforestation. Most of the remaining original vegetation cover has been subject to various types of interference. For the past five decades, the Cerrado has been the main area of agricultural expansion and consolidation of Brazilian agribusiness, leading to the loss of half of the original vegetation cover of this unique and threatened hotspot.
Deforestation levels in the Cerrado are currently higher than in the Amazon, as are greenhouse gas emissions levels. Although the Cerrado has few dense forests, it is equally or even more important because of its biodiversity and its water and carbon services. Although the Brazilian Forest Code stipulates the designation of Permanent Preservation Areas and Legal Reserves, they will be no more than isolated fragments if deforestation in the Cerrado continues at its current pace.
The Cerrado's economic development model is putting pressure on both local communities and natural ecosystems through continued conversion of land for agricultural and livestock purposes. By 2010, 47% of the Cerrado's land had already been converted to land for human use. This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the Cerrado has one of the lowest levels of protection, with only 8% of the territory covered by protected areas.
The extreme biological richness of this hotspot, combined with the alarming rate of land conversion, indicates that urgent measures must be taken to ensure environmental sustainability and human well-being.
[1] Cerrado Ecosystem Profile Summary, prepared by Conservation International (CI-Brazil) and the Society, Population and Nature Institute (ISPN in Portuguese)..