In 2019, the Ituna/Itatá Indigenous Territory in Pará, Brazil was the most deforested Indigenous land in the entire country. Today, after years of relentless destruction, something remarkable is happening there: the forest is finally getting a chance to heal.
The Igarapé Ipiaçava people — individuals living in voluntary isolation — have called this 142,807-hectare territory home for generations. They were first detected during the planning of the controversial Belo Monte hydroelectric dam, and their existence has hung in the balance as land-grabbers advanced. The land has been under a protective restriction order since 2011, renewed six times, most recently in 2025, specifically to shield these isolated communities and the forest they depend on.
Yet for years, the restrictions weren't enough. From 2022 to 2025, Ituna/Itatá lost 2,211 hectares of tree cover to illegal clearing, driven by land-grabbers who clear forest without authorization to establish cattle ranches and cocoa processing operations. Cleiton Gabriel, coordinator of the Middle Xingu Ethno-Environmental Protection Front — a specialized unit within Brazil's Indigenous affairs agency, Funai — described the pattern: invaders organize into associations, divide the territory into plots without any legal title, then install pastures and structures to simulate economic activity and assert control.
"The deforestation in the Ituna/Itatá region historically stems from the illegal occupation of the territory," Gabriel told Mongabay. "This is driven by land grabbing, the establishment of agricultural activities, especially intensive livestock farming."
The consequences extend far beyond trees. A technical report by the Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB) warns that biodiversity loss threatens the food security and physical survival of the isolated people. Their "extreme immunological vulnerability" makes any contact with outsiders a serious health risk.
But the tide is turning. In 2023, Brazil's federal government carried out a decisive operation to remove invaders, clear cattle from the land, and halt further environmental degradation. The results, measured by satellite data from Global Forest Watch, have been striking: deforestation dropped 75% in 2024 compared to the previous year. And in 2025, the territory lost just 10 hectares of forest — a sliver of what once was.
"Since then, deforestation there has ceased," Gabriel said.
The protection orders remain in force. Funai's specialized teams continue their work. And in the heart of the Amazon, the Igarapé Ipiaçava people — invisible to most of the world — are finally getting some breathing room.