Rising Deforestation Rates Drive Greater Environmental Degradation in Myanmar

Pajau Media

June 20, 2025

Since the military coup, not only in Kachin State but across the entire country, Myanmar has seen year-on-year increases in environmental destruction. Environmental observers report that the right to speak out on environmental issues has also been lost.

Following the events of 2021, Myanmar has not only faced widespread human rights violations but also growing damage to its natural forests, water resources, timber, and bamboo. The destruction of rivers and lakes is leading to increasingly severe natural disasters each year.

Unregulated logging and bamboo extraction, as well as excessive gold mining, are disrupting waterways and causing natural disasters such as flooding and landslides.

In Kachin State, during late May and early June, heavy rainfall in areas including Putao, Hkawng Lang Hpu, Nawng Mung, Lang Se, Sadung, Chyihpwi, Kanpaiti, Waimaw, and Myitkyina led to severe flooding. Many homes were swept away or destroyed, bridges collapsed, and six people lost their lives.

The situation is made worse by the involvement of powerful business owners, who collaborate with authorities to conduct excessive gold and mineral extraction, further accelerating Myanmar’s environmental degradation.

According to Global Forest Watch, Myanmar lost over 710,000 acres of forest in 2024 alone.

News – Pilan U