Forest Fire Count Up YOY In Madagascar - Dry Year + Illegal Clearance Combine For Bad Burning Season

[hatrack]

The number of fires burning in and around forests in the northeastern part of Madagascar increased during the 2010 burning season relative the the year before, according to analysis of NASA data by WildMadagascar.org / Mongabay.com. The rise in burning corresponds to an especially dry year and continued illegal logging of the region's biologically-rich rainforests.

Data available from Conservation International's Fire Alert System, which aggregates MODIS fire data from NASA satellites, shows that the number of fires in districts in Sofia, Diana, Analanjirofo, and Sava in northeastern Madagascar increased roughly 8 percent in September through December 2010 relative to the year earlier period. In total, 1,965 fires were recorded burning in and around forest areas during the 2010 time frame, whereas 1,827 were observed in 2009. But fires outside forest areas decreased by about a quarter in the region.

The number of forest and non-forest fires in 2009 and 2010 in the region was substantially higher than 2007 and 2008. Local observers say an increase in rosewood logging may have contributed to the increase. Last year's military coup, which displaced Madagascar's democratically-elected president and diminished governance across the country, has facilitated illegal logging in the region's rainforests reserves, including Masoala National Park, which reportedly has as many as 1,000 illegal loggers operating within its boundaries at present. Some 10,000 people are estimated to have settled in the park.

Although Madagascar officially maintains a ban on rosewood exports, an investigation by the Environmental Investigation Agency has found evidence linking Andry Rajoelina, the coup leader and acting president, to timber trafficking. Video provided by the NGO captured Chinese rosewood traders admitting to direct dealing with Rajoelina. The revelations have since contributed to a political scandal, dubbed "Rosewoodgate".

EDIT

http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0110-madagascar_burning.html