Farm-scale distribution of deforestation and remaining forest cover in Mato Grosso

An analysis of data on property size and type as well as land use reveals the distribution of deforestation, remaining forest cover and carbon stocks in Mato Grosso, Brazil's third largest state. Nearly two-thirds of remaining forests and carbon reserves, equating to between 2 and 3 Pg of carbon, are located on private properties. Around 80% of forests and carbon reserves are on properties larger than 1,000 ha, with smallholder farms and public land reform settlements controlling only a tiny fraction of the state's remaining forest and carbon reserves. Efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation must target owners controlling most of the remaining forest and land types with the highest deforestation rates. We thus suggest that policymakers seeking to protect the remaining forest should focus both incentives and enforcement of anti-deforestation laws in the larger properties where most of these forests are located.