In Brazil, so-called “green deserts” have been expanding across the country, […] Brazil produces more eucalyptus than any other country, primarily for timber and pulp harvest. […] Its new megaplant in Ribas do Rio Pardo, Mato Grosso do Sul–opened with the blessing of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva–is one of the largest industrial pulp facilities on Earth. As plantations grow, so do reports of depleted national water reserves, increased deforestation of native forests, loss of Indigenous and traditional territories, agrotoxin contamination, and escalating conflicts with indigenous communities.

GE [genetically engineered] eucalyptus is being marketed as the next frontier of “carbon dioxide removal.” These trees are engineered for traits such as accelerated growth or delayed decomposition and are framed as climate solutions despite ecological and scientific uncertainties. They represent land-based geoengineering with consequences for forests, water systems, biodiversity, and Indigenous Peoples.