Satellite data released on July 1st reveals that the Amazon rainforest in Brazil has recorded 13,489 cases of forest fires in the first half of this year, an increase of over 61% compared to the same period last year. This is the worst figure in the past 20 years.
Experts believe that the sharp increase in forest fires in the Amazon during the first six months of this year is due to a historic drought in the world’s largest tropical rainforest last year. Since the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) in Brazil began collecting data in 1998, only the first halves of 2003 and 2004 recorded more forest fires than in the past six months, with 17,143 and 17,340 cases, respectively.
Smoke rising from a forest fire in the Amazon in Itaituba, Pará, Brazil. (Photo credit: AFP/TTXVN)
INPE’s data also shows that deforestation in the Amazon in Brazil is decreasing. Specifically, the area of rainforest cleared from January 1 to June 21 this year has decreased by 42% compared to the same period last year.
The Amazon rainforest is considered the “lungs of the Earth,” helping to mitigate global warming by absorbing CO2.
In the first half of this year, two other ecosystems in the southern Amazon – namely the Pantanal wetlands and Cerrado savanna – also recorded a record number of forest fires. The Pantanal is one of the largest tropical wetlands in the world, primarily located in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, while the Cerrado savanna covers much of Brazil.
In the Pantanal, home to millions of caiman, parrots, and otters, and boasting the highest density of jaguars in the world, there have been 3,538 forest fires in the first half of this year, a staggering increase of over 2,000% compared to the same period last year. In June alone, 2,639 fires were detected, six times the highest number ever recorded. Experts warn that this situation is very concerning as the peak of the forest fire season typically occurs in the latter half of the year, especially in September when the weather is driest. Last week, Mato Grosso declared a state of emergency, and officials reported that they had to mobilize firefighting forces from other areas to extinguish the fires.
Meanwhile, in the Cerrado, one of the three largest savannas in the world, 13,229 forest fires were recorded in the first six months of this year, nearly matching the number of fires in the Amazon. The Cerrado savanna covers an area comparable to that of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom combined.
A spokesperson for the environmental organization Greenpeace Brazil, expert Romulo Batista, believes that climate change is increasing the number of forest fires. According to Batista, most ecosystems in Brazil are under pressure due to lack of rainfall. The drier environment makes vegetation more arid and prone to burning. However, this expert argues that most forest fires are not spontaneous, such as those caused by lightning, but rather the result of human activity, particularly land clearing for agricultural purposes.
