Even the coronavirus did not stop the deforestation of the Amazon. Deforestation has reached a new peak.
Even the coronavirus did not stop the deforestation of the Amazon. Deforestation has reached a new peak.
Brazil faced a massive wave of coronavirus infection in 2020. Nevertheless, deforestation is still taking place in the Amazon. In addition, it has accelerated a lot. Therefore, there are fears that last year’s catastrophe, which was rampant with record-breaking forest fires, will not be repeated. The AFP agency writes about it.
The deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon has reached a new peak in the first four months of this year, according to a report by Brazil’s National Space Research Institute, which uses satellite imagery to track the destruction: 1,202 square kilometers of forest disappeared between early January and late April.
This represents an increase of 55 percent over the same period last year. At that time, the largest deforestation was recorded since August 2015, when observations began.
These figures raise new questions about how Brazil is protecting its part of the world’s largest tropical forest under the right-wing President Jair Bolsonar, a well-known climate skeptic who advocates the provision of protected areas for logging and agriculture.
“Unfortunately, it looks like we can expect new fires and more deforestation this year,” said Greenpeace activist Romulo Batista.
The covid-19 epidemic in the country only complicates the situation. The most affected is the state of the Amazon, mostly covered with vegetation. However, he has only one intensive care unit and the epidemic has caught him unprepared. There are also concerns about indigenous peoples who are vulnerable to diseases coming from elsewhere.
And environmentalists fear that forest protection will be postponed due to the fight against the 19-party.
Ecological protection during Bolsonar’s reign
In 2019, the first year of Jair Bolsonar’s government, deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon increased by 85 percent, destroying 10,123 square kilometers of green space. This devastation has raised concerns around the world about the future of the jungle, which is considered crucial in the fight against climate change.
The Amazon has two years of prosperity, approaching an irreversible break. The destruction was caused by record forest fires in the Amazon from May to October, illegal logging and agricultural practices in the protected area. “The beginning of the year is not a time of normal deforestation because it’s raining a lot,” says Erika Berenguer, an ecology expert at Oxford University. “When deforestation has been growing since the beginning of the year in the past, it has meant that the whole year will be above average in terms of deforestation,” he added. Jair Bolsonaro allowed the army to deploy in the Amazon to fight fires and deforestation. He did so last year after receiving sharp criticism from the international community.Â
The government’s strategy is only about fires and does not take into account the fact that they are often started by farmers and cattle breeders who cut down trees and then burn them, Erika Berenguer recalls. “It’s like taking a painkiller when your tooth hurts. It will ease the pain, but if there is decay, it will not cure him. ” The mayor of Manaus, the capital of the state of Amazonas, called for help in both tragedies. “We need paramedics, respirators, protective equipment, everything that can save the lives of those who protect the forest,” Arthur Virgilio said.
