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Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest reached record levels in the first six months of this year, after it destroyed an area five times the size of New York City, preliminary government data showed.

According to the National Space Agency, from January to June, 3,988 square kilometers were removed.

This represents a 10.6 percent increase over the same months last year and the highest level since the current series of deforestation data began to be compiled in mid-2015.

Devastation in June rose 5.5 percent to 1,120 square kilometers, a record for that month of the year.

The Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest, contains large amounts of carbon, which is released by deforestation, leading to atmospheric warming and climate change.

The work of clearing trees began to creep deeper into the forest. In the first six months of the year, the state of Amazonas, located at the heart of the rainforest, recorded more destruction than any other state for the first time.