An environmental group has warned that the recent rescue package worked out between the International Monetary Fund and Brazil could have dire consequences for the Amazon rainforest.

A spokeswoman for the United States-based National Wildlife Federation said the Brazilian government is proposing drastic cuts in funding for conservation programmes to try to balance its budget and meet the IMF's targets.

She said that this would be a tragedy for the Amazon, which remains in serious danger from widespread logging.

The National Wildlife Federation issued its warning as environmentalists prepare to mark the tenth anniversary of the murder of Chico Mendes, the Brazilian rubber tapper whose death caused an international outcry.