- Record Number of Fire Hotspots detected in the Amazon Rainforest
- Satellites report 38,266 fire hotspots in August, more than double last year’s figures.
- El Niño and Climate Change
- Supercharged El Niño and climate change are to blame for the record drought and increasing fire danger.
- Deforestation and Human Activity
- It fuels fire spread and intensity by converting jungle into cattle ranches.
- According to an analysis by WWF-Brasil
- Experts in conservation link increased fires with weather, climate change, and human activities
- What’s next
- The situation has remained critical since most fires happen between the months of August and September
- Body:
- In August, the number of fires in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil has surged dramatically, with the highest number of hotspots recorded since 2010. According to Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, Inpe, satellites detected 38,266 fire hotspots in the region, marking a sharp increase compared with last year. The extreme drought, an exceptionally strong El Niño has driven the fire activity and increased the sensitivity of the rainforest to fires.
This increase in the number of fire hotspots extends the alarming trend from July, which also reached a two-decade high in fire activity. While the satellite data gives an important indication of the prevalence of fires, it does not indicate the intensity or the damage caused.
The Amazon fires typically start at cattle ranches that have cleared land for grazing. But this year, the combination of warmer air, drier vegetation and deforestation has come together to provide the perfect conditions for the fires to spread quicker and burn with more intensity. The loss of the rainforest cover has reduced its natural ability to create rain and maintain high humidity levels, feeding the fire.
Helga Correa, a protected areas specialist at WWF-Brasil said, “The hot spots are located in the so-called ‘Arch of Deforestation, part of the states of Rondonia, Amazonas and Para.” She added that such correlation underlines the high importance of human activities, besides climate change, as a driving factor for the recent increase in fires.
Considering the Amazon suffered such unprecedented levels of fire, the continuation of the environmental crisis makes it crystal clear that efforts both locally and globally need to be ongoing to fight against deforestation and climate change impacts.