La situación de la Amazonia en España

Today, March 21, is the International Day of Forests. The aim is to raise awareness about the importance of forests in people’s lives and the crucial role they play in eradicating poverty, sustaining the environment, and ensuring food security.

In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed March 21 as the International Day of Forests. Through this observance, we pay tribute to the significance of all types of forests and strive to increase awareness in this regard.

Each year on the International Day of Forests, countries are encouraged to take initiatives at local, national, and international levels to organize activities related to forests and trees, such as tree planting campaigns.

Amazon Rainforest

Within the framework of the International Day of Forests 2025 celebrated today, March 21, ecologists believe that 2025 is a pivotal year for the future of the Amazon region ahead of the upcoming Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30) to be held in November in the city of Belém, in the Brazilian state of Pará.

The Amazon, the largest tropical region on the planet, is a vast area covering 9 countries and spanning 7 million km2 along the equator in South America. It is a crucially diverse and heterogeneous area essential for maintaining ecological resilience under the effects of global climate change.

The Amazon plays a critical role in the Earth’s climate system. Ecologists warn that to avoid exacerbating climate change and biodiversity loss, as well as to ensure the survival of indigenous peoples, it is essential to halt deforestation and degradation of the Amazon.

The Amazon region continues to lose forest area, biodiversity, and its climate-regulating capacity. Indigenous peoples living there are seeing their rights to their territories and resources eroded.

Over the past 40 years in the entire Amazon region, an area of forest equivalent to almost twice the size of Portugal and Spain combined has disappeared. As a result, between 36% and 57% of Amazonian tree species are threatened by deforestation.

Due to this intense degradation between 2010 and 2019, Brazil’s Amazon released 20% more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than it absorbed, making it a net emission source. If the Amazon continues to be a constant source of emissions and loses its carbon sink function, it could accelerate global warming and worsen climate change.

The Agribusiness Industry and Deforestation

According to the IPCC, by 2050, the agribusiness sector will be the sector with the highest number of greenhouse gas emissions, surpassing even energy production or transportation. The sector has the potential to mitigate up to 70% of these emissions.

Deforestation for expanding land for cattle farming accounts for a significant portion of emissions in Brazil’s food sector. After logging trees for commercial purposes, the use of fire (deforestation) is the tool used to convert the forest remnants into crops and pastures.

These fires release large amounts of pollutants into the atmosphere. Brazil is one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of cereals and beef, responsible for 73.7% of greenhouse gas emissions in the country.

The expansion of land for cattle farming and the increase in total emissions in the sector by 56% are largely due to the deforestation caused by the industry. Livestock farming is responsible for 30% of global methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas.

Despite having a shorter lifespan in the atmosphere than CO2, methane is 80 times more potent in terms of global warming. Its emissions have increased significantly since pre-industrial times and it is the second-largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world.

90% of the deforested areas in the Amazon have been converted into pastures for cattle farming. The remaining areas are used to grow soybeans, a large portion of which is exported to third countries, such as Spain.

Santander Bank’s Role in Financing Deforestation in Brazil

Santander Bank in Brazil is the largest international bank responsible for financing the three major beef producers and exporters in Brazil: JBS, Marfrig, and Minerva. These meat companies are associated with deforestation in the Amazon and other Brazilian biomes, emitting methane in the process.

A report by Greenpeace on methane emissions from the meat industry, published in October 2024, emphasizes that some client companies of Banco Santander, such as JBS, Marfrig, and Minerva, are among the top five methane-emitting companies in the meat and dairy sector.

Among these companies, JBS, the world’s largest protein producer and the second-largest food company globally, is estimated to emit more methane than major oil companies like ExxonMobil and Shell.

In September 2023, an investigation revealed a scandal regarding JBS’s misleading «green» emissions, which Santander Bank helped bring to market. These emissions were partially intended for agricultural animal companies in Brazil accused of environmental damage and enabling slave labor practices, including JBS.

Forests in Spain

While deforestation issues plague other regions, the forest area in Spain is increasing. 56% of the total Spanish territory is considered forested, amounting to 28,391,780 hectares. Of this area, 19,239,973 hectares are covered by dense forests, accounting for 38% of the country’s land.

Spain ranks second in the European Union in terms of forest heritage, after Sweden and before Finland, Germany, France, or Poland. Since 1990, Spain has seen an average annual growth rate of nearly 73,000 hectares in its forest area, with a total increase of 4.6 million hectares in the past 25 years.

The rural exodus from the mid-15th century and the abandonment of primary sector activities in agricultural and forest areas have contributed to the expansion of forested areas in Spain. Despite having a larger forested area, many of Spain’s mountains are at high risk due to structural issues in the rural Spanish environment, including abandonment, lack of management, and a significant decline in the extraction of forest resources (timber, firewood, resin, cork, widespread animal grazing).

In addition, the effects of climate change exacerbate diseases and pests, leading to the weakening and death of trees, as well as an increased risk of high-intensity forest fires. The extended high-risk fire season and new fire typologies are making severe and frequent forest fires more common.

These are the critical issues surrounding forests, deforestation, and climate change that need urgent attention and action to ensure the preservation and sustainability of our planet’s ecosystems.

FUENTE