The MapBiomas Project is concerned that the monitoring system for the deforestation in the Cerrado, implemented by the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe) through the Prodes and Deter programs, is threatened with discontinuity by lack of funds for its implementation.

The detection of deforestation by remote sensing in the Cerrado is an action strategy for the protection of biodiversity and the water regime in the region where the country's main watersheds. It is also essential to ensure transparency about environmental information in one of the most important regions for the national agricultural production.

Aware of the signs that such a scenario could happen, the MapBiomas team comes developing a Deforestation Alert System (SAD) specific to the Cerrado, which can be activated at any time to ensure monitoring of the deforestation in the biome.

We hope that the threat of shutdown of Prodes and Deter Cerrado does not materialize and that the excellent work carried out by Inpe continues to be supported and valued. But if that happens, we will do everything possible to ensure that monitoring is guaranteed and available to society as a whole through SAD Cerrado.

MapBiomas is a multi-institutional initiative that involves a collaborative network formed by universities, NGOs and technology companies dedicated to mapping the transformations on land cover and use in Brazilian territory. All data and methods produced by MapBiomas are made available openly and free of charge to all audiences. To learn more, visit: http://mapbiomas.org