BR-163

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The BR-163 is a Brazilian highway that goes from Cuiaba in the southern part of Mato Grosso to Santarem in the state of Para. It runs through 1,100 miles splitting the heart of the Amazon. Currently unpaved, the road is muddy and impassable in the wet season. As part of the Avanca Brasil project, it has been proposed to pave the road in its entirety.

Conservationists worry that paving the road will lead to deforestation in the Amazon through greater access to pristine areas, cheaper transportation costs for soybeans and other agricultural commodities, and land speculation along the highway.

sources: [1]

Philip Fearnside. 2001. Soybean Cultivation as a Threat to the Environment in Brazil. Environmental Conservation 28 (1):23-28.