Humans are to blame for the burning Amazon, not wind and heat, environmental group says

[Judi Lynn]

BY CAITLIN O'KANE

AUGUST 22, 2019 / 2:01 PM / CBS NEWS

The Amazon rainforest is being ravaged by flames. Soot from thousands of wildfires has blackened skies across Brazil, and the smoke is even visible from space. Brazil's Environmental Minister Ricardo Salles has been using Twitter to give updates on the devastating fires, writing in one tweet that "dry weather, wind and heat" were to blame for their spread.

Environmentalists, however, say humans are the root cause of the fires devastating the Amazon.

Amazon Watch, a group that works to protect the rainforest and the indigenous people of the Amazon, says farmers have been setting forests ablaze to create pastures. Farmers and ranchers have been emboldened to do so by the government, said Amazon Watch program director Christian Poirier.

"The unprecedented fires ravaging the Amazon are an international tragedy and a dangerous contribution to climate chaos," Poirier said in a statement on the group's website. "This devastation is directly related to President Bolsonaro's anti-environmental rhetoric, which erroneously frames forest protections and human rights as impediments to Brazil's economic growth."

More:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/humans-are-to-blame-for-the-burning-amazon-not-wind-and-heat-environmentalist-group-says/

[Judi Lynn]

1. Are farmers setting the Amazon ablaze in support of Bolsonaro?

On Monday, smoke turned day to night in Sao Paulo. Residents of the city recently reported black rain. Photo by Andre Lucas / picture alliance via Getty Images
DIA DO FOGO

By Nathanael Johnson on Aug 22, 2019 at 3:35 pm

Farmers are reportedly setting fire to the Amazon rainforest to show support for Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s policy of opening up protected areas to private ownership. According to a widely disseminated article in a small newspaper, Folha do Progresso, the organizers of this “Day of Fire” are hoping that 2019 sets a record for burning.

Ranchers and farmers routinely use fire in tropical agriculture to clear land for planting and cattle pastures, but the practice had slowed before Bolsonaro took office in January. Brazil’s space research agency reported this week that fires have increased 84 percent this year compared to the dry season last year. On Monday, smoke from rampant fires plunged Sao Paulo into darkness in the afternoon.

Many news outlets have said the 74,000 fires Brazil has seen this year sets a record, but that’s based on statistics that only date back to 2013. And deforestation is actually down from its peak in the 1980s. The real, undisputable news here is that there’s been a spike in fires and deforestation under Bolsonaro. And given the Amazon rainforest’s important role in capturing carbon emissions, the stakes seem much higher.

Christian Poirier, a program director for the nonprofit Amazon Watch, said that farmers were clearly emboldened by Bolsonaro to burn forests. “The fires currently ravaging the Amazon are directly related to President Bolsonaro’s anti-environmental rhetoric, in which he errantly frames forests and forest protections as impediments to Brazil’s economic growth. Farmers and ranchers understand the president’s message as a license to commit arson with wanton impunity, in order to aggressively expand their operations into the rainforest.”

More:
https://grist.org/article/are-farmers-setting-day-of-fire-amazon-ablaze-to-support-bolsonaro/

[dixiegrrrrl]

2. ICYMI:

The Amazon rainforest is the world’s largest tropical forest.
It’s home to 30 million people and hosts the largest concentration of biodiversity on the planet.
It’s quenched by the largest river in the world.
It makes 20 percent of the oxygen on Earth.
It holds upward of 140 billion metric tons of carbon.
And right now, it’s burning.

[applegrove]

3. No emoji for not being able to breath.

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. Maybe this.....

.....

[applegrove]

7. Didn't think of that.

[Duppers]

4. +1000

Thanks for these concise facts. The Brazil rainforests need an intervention. Survival of many species depend upon it, including humans.

But, oh, we can't intervene in another country's business, not for good purposes anyway. (This must be distinguished from previous money-making, ruthless tactics -- this is survival, folks and, to repeat, we need humanitary safeguards against 20th century rethugians-like tactics in doing so.)

[Mike 03]

8. If these were normal times, Brazil's neighbors, Germany, France, UK and the US

would offer resources to help put out these fires, but everyone believes Bolsonaro wants the Amazon to burn, so I guess nobody is offering. I know we won't sanction Bolsonaro, but my hope is that he is sanctioned by our allies and maybe the UN, or at least condemned. This is tragic beyond words.

[Duppers]

9. This is so urgent!

You've the best idea! The UN should call a special session NOW in order to address this.

[Duppers]

5. Big K&R