The Fire in Amazonia Will "Burn" For Years
- Apurvah Sahay Aarzoo
- Aug 23, 2019
- 3 min read
With smoke darkening skies of cities thousand miles away, the future of our planet looks dark to me!
Amazon, our planets largest rainforest, has been on fire since the past three weeks! The colourful mosaic of vegetation and several eco-systems now looks grey from NASA’s satellite image. The air in the cities smells like one has dug their nose into an ashtray! Our planets lungs are on fire! Our lungs are on fire! It is unbearable to step outside in Delhi or cross a flyover U-turn during office hours, I can’t possibly imagine the situation in Amazonia for all species!
Not only does the Amazon inhabit 10 percent of the world’s KNOWN species and 40,000 plant species and millions of insects! It is home to 430 species of mammals and holds 40 percent of the world’s tropical forest and holds 20 percent of the world’s fresh water supply. Let us not forget, it is home 30 million people that keep 200 different cultures alive and relevant!
To read more on Amazon's importance, check out this website: http://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/amazon/about_the_amazon/why_amazon_important/
The Amazon rainforest is under increasing pressure to provide subsistence and prosperity, leading to deforestation. Each year, thousands of square miles of rainforest are butchered with tears and blood of so many species bleeding out! We are deaf to the cries of the poor white-cheeked spider monkey who is either being hunted or now choked to death or the prayers of the Hyacinth Macaw for a longer flight away from human beings! We are digging our own graves!
This fire will result in a major loss of trees and biodiversity and the release of dangerously excess CO2 into the atmosphere. Recalling our science classes, forest fires not only release carbon dioxide but also release pollutants including particulate matter and toxic gases such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and non-methane organic compounds into the atmosphere!
“Dry season in yet to come in September”
Amazon is an important repository of carbon and water. Deforestation disrupts the water cycle by allowing water to runoff directly to rivers rather than being trapped in soil and vegetation and slowly released throughout the year. This makes the forest more vulnerable to drought and the further loss of trees and release of global warming pollution.
According to environmentalists, 99 percent of the forest fires are a result of human actions, either on purpose or by accident. Farmers and ranchers use the slash and burn method generally to clear the land for further utilisation. Vegetation being dry makes it most suitable to burn and clear land so that their cattle can graze and other seasonal agricultural patterns can be followed! However, the peak of the dry season is yet to come in September. The environmentalists are blaming Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for encouraging forest fires. He took to the office on the 1st of January 2019 and Brazil has noticed an 84% increase in forest fires than last year.
When Bolsonaro was running for president, he had promised to restore Brazil's economy by exploring the economic potential of the Amazon rainforest. Since 2000 Brazil had established the world's largest network of protected areas, the majority of which are located in the Amazon region. As per environmentalists, Bolsonaro has encouraged the farmers and ranchers to exploit and burn the rainforest like never before and has eased protections of vital areas of the forest.
Local newspapers say farmers in some regions are organising “fire days” to take advantage of weaker enforcement by the authorities. Wild-life experts and other professionals who have spent years working and studying in the Amazon rainforest called this year's expansive fire outbreaks "truly heart-wrenching."
Looks like environmentalists are alone in blaming the president –
London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, said the fires were being “aided and abetted by the Brazilian government”. The burning of the rainforest was “an act of shocking environmental vandalism with global consequences”.
In retaliation, Bolsonaro has blamed environmental non-profit organisations for acting as obstacles in his mission to further develop Brazil's economy and aiming to defame his administration. Well, if this is true, he is a pretty unlucky man and with his below-mentioned tweet as a response to French President, Macron’s tweet on the issue, I am quite surprised how shortsighted can this President be!
“I regret that president Macron seeks to take advantage of what is a domestic Brazilian issue and of other Amazonian countries for personal political gain,” Bolsonaro tweeted, targeting what he called Macron’s “sensationalist tone”.
The fire in Amazonia will burn (obviously, metaphorically) for years unless we do not take adequate and collective action! The magnificent rainforest will get completely burned out if it is not put out soon. Thankfully, Bolivia has ordered the world's largest air tanker, Boeing 747 ‘Supertanker’ , to put out the blazing Amazon rainforest fire. Wondering how can you help? Check out this post by Buzzfeed:
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