Abstract
The precise role that deforestation for agricultural settlements and commercial forest products plays in promoting or inhibiting malaria incidence in Amazonian Brazil is controversial. Using publically available databases, we analyzed temporal malaria incidence (2009–2015) in municipalities of nine Amazonian states in relation to ecologically defined variables: (i) deforestation (rate of forest clearing over time); (ii) degraded forest (degree of human disturbance and openness of forest canopy for logging) and (iii) impacted forest (sum of deforested and degraded forest patches). We found that areas affected by one kilometer square of deforestation produced 27 new malaria cases (r² = 0.78; F1,10 = 35.81; P < 0.001). Unexpectedly, we found both a highly significant positive correlation between number of impacted forest patches less than 5 km2 and malaria cases, and that these patch sizes accounted for greater than ~95% of all patches in the study area. There was a significantly negative correlation between extraction forestry economic indices and malaria cases. Our results emphasize not only that deforestation promotes malaria incidence, but also that it directly or indirectly results in a low Human Development Index, and favors environmental conditions that promote malaria vector proliferation.
Highlights
The relationship between deforestation and malaria in the Amazon is controversial, with some studies claiming that deforestation can diminish malaria incidence[1,2], and others that Plasmodium Marchiafava & Celli transmission risk is enhanced by deforestation[3,4,5,6]
The risk of acquiring malaria in an agricultural settlement is mainly associated with environmental and socioeconomic determinants that include characteristics of human dwellings, proximity of dwellings to larval habitats of Ny. darlingi, exposure to infected biting females, and forest cover[21,23,26,28,29]; access to health facilities, diagnostic and treatment for malaria, the educational level of human communities that is associated with community organization and knowledge relative to malaria transmission, history of previous migration, and the economic development of the communities, among others[29,30,31]
The size of a forest patch can increase the distance between larval habitat and forest edge, and modify sunlight incidence, increasing Ny. darlingi abundance[33,34,35,36]
Summary
The relationship between deforestation and malaria in the Amazon is controversial, with some studies claiming that deforestation can diminish malaria incidence[1,2], and others that Plasmodium Marchiafava & Celli transmission risk is enhanced by deforestation[3,4,5,6]. Economic growth of an Amazonian rural settlement depends on the development of a market network, robust transport system and social and public infrastructure, including construction of health facilities These activities are associated with what is defined as pendulum mobility[32], which implies continuous human movement between rural areas and cities, a process that can establish and sustain a high incidence of malaria[31]. The objectives of this study were to: (1) assess the impact of deforestation (km2) on malaria; (2) address temporal and spatial correlation of malaria and deforestation; and (3) verify association between selective logging, charcoal production and malaria; (4) verify correlation of rainfall and the number of malaria cases, deforestation and degraded forest; and between the municipalities with the highest number of malaria cases; (5) test the impact of exploitation of timber and charcoal on malaria incidence, and (6) address the Amazon social service chain of connectivity (supplies, transport, trade and public service demands) and malaria incidence across these network linkages
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
