Expanded Reproduction of Devastation: Land Concentration, Agribusiness, and Environmental Impacts in Brazil

Abstract

The expansion of Brazilian agribusiness, grounded in the intensive use of natural resources, has been a catalytic factor in accelerating climate change. This study examines the interdependence among agrarian issues and ongoing transformations in Brazil, focusing on the impact of three key indicators: wildfires, deforestation, and pesticide use. Anchored in Marx’s theory of metabolic rift and the critique of land concentration, the research discusses how the logic of capitalist accumulation subordinates the intensive exploitation of natural resources to the reproduction of capital. Based on a regionalized analysis, the results reveal that the North and Center-West regions of Brazil exhibit the highest levels of environmental degradation, while the use of chemical inputs has reached critical levels in the South and Southeast. Although the Northeast presents lower absolute values, it also registers an accelerated pace of degradation. Furthermore, the operational patterns of agribusiness point to the insufficiency of environmental control policies and to the sector’s structural dependence on the intensive exploitation of nature.