There are already 500 more fires than in the entire previous year. Greenpeace speaks of a “tragedy foretold”.
Brazil has already recorded more forest fires in the Amazon region this year than in the whole of 2021. According to the Brazilian space agency Inpe, satellite observations from January 1 to September 18, 2022 identified about 75,592 sources of fire. in the rainforest. In the previous year there were a total of 75,090 fires. “These forest fires are a tragedy foretold,” said André Freitas, spokesman for the environmental organization Greenpeace in Brazil.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s four-year term was one of the darkest moments for the environment. Environmental and climate protectionists blame the policy of the right-wing president, whom they accuse of favoring illegal deforestation, for the increase in fires. Since Bolsonaro took office in January 2019, average annual deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has increased by 75% compared to the previous decade.
In October, Brazilians will elect a new president. Some experts believe illegal slash-and-burn agriculture will increase this year because Bolsonaro lags behind his rival, former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in polls. Lula promises stricter protection for the Amazon region.
(APA/DPA)