Agrarian Structure and Land-cover Change Along the Lifespan of Three Colonization Areas in the Brazilian Amazon

SummaryWe analyze three aging state-led land reform projects in Amazônia, as, through time, lot turnover, consolidation, and fragmentation differentially impact the spatial composition of agrarian structure and land use. Data include 1970–2003 satellite imagery, GIS layers, and interviews with 640 farmers. Lot turnover rates of 72% and increases of 0.31 in Gini indexes show active land markets resulting in intrasettlement urbanization. Deforestation rates are positively correlated with property size and cattle herd size in all study sites, resulting in land aggregation and intrasettlement urbanization but are not related to land titles. Privatization of public lands in the Amazon re-enforces land inequality gaps instead of reducing them. Better models are needed.