BBC Wildlife - UK (2019-12)

thesefireslikelygotoutofcontrolthis

yearandscorchednearbyforest.Many

environmentalistsarguethatfarmersalso

intentionallyburnneighbouringforest

tomakewayformoreagriculturalland.

Inwhatbecomesa viciouscircle,felling

treeschangesthemicroclimateofthearea,

makingthelandhotteranddrier,somore

vulnerabletoburninginfuture.

Everydryseason,firesareusedtoclear

plantdebrisintheAmazon.Butwithan

80 percentincreaseinthenumberoffires

comparedwith2018,thisyearwasdifferent.

Whatcausedthisspike?

Politicsofdestruction

On1 January2019,JairBolsonarobecame

the38thpresidentofBrazil.Withbold

visionsofincreasingeconomicdevelopment

inthecountry,heviewedtheAmazon

asa cashcowtobeexploited.According

toAuricéliaArapium,anindigenous

leaderfromParáStateinBrazil,“Boththe

environmentandindigenouspeopleshave

beencalled‘barrierstodevelopment’bythe

currentgovernment.”

Sincetakingoffice,thepresidenthas

systematicallycutfundingforthecountry’s

wildlifeconservationworkandweakened

itsenvironmentallegislationwhilesacking

staffthatworkinenvironmentdepartments.

“Whatchangedthisyearwasthepublic

discourseofthepresidentdefendingland

grabbersandalltypesofcriminalswhofelt

freetocommitcrimes,”reflectsReis.

Numerousindigenouscommunitieslive

withintheAmazonandmanyconcurthat

theburninghasbeencausedbycommercial

farmersspurredonbyBrazil’spresident.

FlorêncioAlmeidaVazFilhooftheMaytapu

indigenouspeopleinBrazilexplainsthat“It

is notthepoorpeasantswhoburntheforest.

It is becauseoftherichownersofcattle

farmsandsoymonocultures.Andtheyact

withoutfearandarestimulatedbythewords

ofPresidentBolsonaro.”

Blamegame

It is nocoincidencethatthisyearhasseen

a riseinbothdeforestationandinfires.

TheAmazonEnvironmentalInstituteof

Researchcalculatedthatthesiteswith

themostfireswerethesameplacesthat

sufferedthemostdeforestation.

Ina strangeresponsetotheecological

disaster,Bolsonaroblamedlocal

environmentalorganisationsforstarting

Top:rampantland

clearancehasbeen

linkedtothefires.

Above:indigenous

peopleprotestin Rio

deJaneiro.Right:

Brazil’sPresident

Bolsonaro.

Itisnocoincidencethat

thisyearhasseenarise

inbothdeforestation

andinfires.

FACTFILE

BRAZILIAN

AMAZON

QTwo-thirdsofthe

AmazonisinBrazil.

QOver60%ofthe

BrazilianAmazonthat

hasbeencutdownis

usedforpasture.

QOver5.9million

hectaresofthe

BrazilianAmazonwas

burntin2019.

34 BBC Wildlife December 2019

NEWS FEATURE