DEFORESTATION FUELS THE AMAZON FIRES5th Sep 2019 . 0 SHAREA labourer stares at a fire that spread to the farm he work on next to a highway in Nova Santa Helena municipality in northern Mato Grosso State, south in the Amazon basin in Brazil, on August 23, 2019. – Official figures show 78,383 forest fires have been recorded in Brazil this year, the highest number of any year since 2013. Experts say the clearing of land during the months-long dry season to make way for crops or grazing has aggravated the problem. More than half of the fires are in the Amazon. (Photo by Joao LAET / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOAO LAET/AFP/Getty Images)By Alex PollockA record number of fires ravaging the Amazon has drawn international outrage because of the rainforest’s importance to the global environment and prompted Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to dispatch the military to assist in firefighting. (Reuters)Overview of the current situationThe Amazon – the world’s largest rainforest and river basin – stretches across nine South American countries and is home to over one million indigenous people. While fires are regular and natural in the Amazon during the dry season (July to October), there has been an 80% increase in fires since August 2018. In the Brazilian part of the Amazon, there have been more than 57,500 fires this year. On 9 August, Brazil’s largest state, Amazonas, declared a state of emergency, while other states have been placed on environmental alert. 60% of the rainforest is in Brazil, but the fires are also affecting populations in neighbouring Bolivia and Peru.A tropical rain forest is generally not flammable since the dense plants are full of water, but the fires that are currently raging are primarily along the periphery where ongoing human activities weaken the forest and make it vulnerable. The majority of the fires were set to clear land for cattle ranching, soybean plantations, mining and related infrastructure development (such as roads). Since it is currently the dry season, fires are much more prone to spreading beyond containment.Deforestation and the environmental impactWhile the rate of deforestation of the Amazon had declined by more than 80% since it peaked in 2004, there has been a concerning uptrend since July 2018 (increasing by 278%). A more lenient stance on environmental policy by Brazil’s new far-right government is thought to be fuelling the increase, with a growing number of farmers burning more land for economic gain.According to Thomas Lovejoy (an ecologist and professor in Environmental Science and Policy), deforestation of the Amazon has entered a dangerous cycle, where the loss of forest creates a drier environment, spurring on more fires. Since the rainforest generates most of its rainfall itself, as trees are destroyed, rainfall decreases. Experts are concerned that the forest could reach a point of no return, where it resembles a savannah more than a rainforest.But despite the very real concerns of massive deforestation, not only in the Amazon but in various other parts of the world as well, a study published in the science journal Nature (conducted by researchers out of the University of Maryland) points to progress made in the process of “reforestation”. New trees have been planted in areas that had previously been barren, and the increase in global temperature has allowed new growth to occur in deserts, tundra areas, and on mountains. According to Forbes, areas in China and Africa are leading the reforestation efforts.Bolsonaro and economic policyWhen Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was elected in 2018, his campaign message included the idea of opening up the Amazon more to business. Since coming to power, Mr Bolsonaro has lessened fines for fires and has significantly cut funding for Brazil’s environmental agency that monitors and protects the Amazon. Mr Bolsonaro initially claimed that the fires in the Amazon this year were normal, before blaming non-government organisations (NGOs) for setting fires to undermine his administration (no evidence has been presented to substantiate that claim).While Mr Bolsonaro received heavy criticism from global leaders for his apparent lack of effort in controlling the fires, he has also been praised by Brazilians who see his focus on economic development as a welcome sign of change in economically troubling times. An opinion poll found that 60% of Brazilians think Mr Bolsonaro’s administration has done a great, good, or normal job. However, world leaders – notably Emmanuel Macron of France – have threatened to pull out of trade deals if Brazil does not do more to combat the fires.Mr Bolsonaro has said that Brazil does not have the resources to adequately fight the fires, and has deployed military forces to assist. Foreign aid of $20 million was offered by the G7 countries to help contain the fires, but Mr Bolsonaro warned European countries not to get involved, claiming the money was offered as an attempt to undermine Brazil’s so
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