The Brazilian government announced on Tuesday, October 21, the designation of a new federal reserve in the Amazon rainforest encompassing an area the size of Delaware. The new Alto Maues Reserve will confer federal protection from deforestation to 668,000 hectares of pristine forest, most of which has been untouched by human presence, according to the Brazilian Environment Ministry. The area contains hundreds of species of animals and 13 primate species, several of which are considered threatened with extinction. In addition to the habitat protection benefits of the designation, the move is also part of Brazil’s efforts to reduce its carbon emissions, most of which result from deforestation. Brazil has achieved a 70% reduction in deforestation in the last decade, which has prevented 3.2 billion tons of CO2 emissions—or the equivalent of all car emissions in the United States for three years—according to a study published in Science earlier this year. However, the designation does not guarantee that no deforestation will occur; Global Forest Watch has documented deforestation within 100 miles of the reserve, and the loss of up to 20% of the forests in other protected areas. For the full story, see: http://news.mongabay.com/2014/1023-gfrn-morgan-brazil-declares-federal-reserve.html. Earlier: http://elr.info/international/international-update/greenpeace-exposes-illegal-logging-brazilian-amazon.