Brazil planted eucalyptus for pulp. Forty-five years later, groundwater had fallen 4.5 metres

Brazil’s eucalyptus industry promised fast-growing trees, pulp and a renewable supply for the global paper market. Across parts of Bahia and Minas Gerais, that promise has reshaped the landscape with vast plantations.

Now, scientists have found that groundwater levels in Turmalina, Minas Gerais, fell by 4.5 metres over roughly 45 years. The finding has added force to concerns raised by rural communities, which say streams have weakened and water has become more difficult to find.

In Bahia, residents have described the extensive plantations as a “green desert.” The phrase captures concerns about biodiversity, farming and water in areas where diverse vegetation has been replaced by large stands of the same fast-growing species.

Eucalyptus remains commercially attractive because it grows quickly, can be harvested relatively soon and then replanted. That cycle allows companies to maintain a continuous wood supply for pulp and paper production, serving both domestic industries and international markets.

But intensively managed plantations are designed primarily for timber production, unlike natural forests, which contain many layers of vegetation. That difference can alter how an ecosystem handles rainfall. Water may run off, be absorbed by vegetation and soil, or eventually replenish underground reserves.

Eucalyptus trees also draw water from the soil and release it into the atmosphere through evapotranspiration. Research titled “Metamorphosis of the plateau: eucalyptus monoculture and land and water grabbing in Alto Jequitinhonha, Minas Gerais” found substantial differences in groundwater recharge between eucalyptus-dominated landscapes and areas of native vegetation.

The findings do not mean every eucalyptus plantation produces the same result. They do, however, add evidence to the question of whether forests planted for industry can remain sustainable when they occupy huge areas and change the movement of water through the landscape.

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green desert