MORE FROM NEW SCIENTIST
Deforestation in Venezuela surges as gold miners ransack the Amazon
The loss of pristine forest is estimated to be increasing by around 170 per cent annually in Venezuela – an even faster rate than Brazil – as a result of a state-sanctioned boom in gold mining
Intensive farming of cleared land could save rest of Amazon rainforest
Brazil has cleared large parts of the Amazon rainforest for use as farmland, encouraging economic growth but causing environmental harm. Now researchers suggest that making intense use of already cleared land could avoid the need to fell any more trees
Crucial Congo rainforest faces growing threats from logging and mining
The area of forest felled in the Congo basin rose last year, but schemes giving power to Indigenous communities could be key to reversing the trend
Guatemala’s rainforest is expanding thanks to community efforts
The forests of the Maya Biosphere Reserve are growing rather than shrinking, because of a community-led conservation programme
