The amazon fire: this and next time

This has been manifested yet again this month, leading to thousands of wildfire conflagrations across all states of the Brazilian Amazon including some 60 per cent of Brazil’s territory in

Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, Pará, Rondônia, Roraima, Tocantins, Mato Grosso and portions of Maranhão. Many are now witnessing the worst fires in living memory, following long periods of

consecutive days without rain. Major fires have also caused severe losses, burning dozens of houses, shops, churches and schools to the ground. In about 48 hours alone last week, 1,373

discrete fires have been recorded, about half of all fires detected over the same period throughout Brazil.  The big difference between these and previous burning seasons is that this one is

largely motivated by a presidential administration in Brazil that is severely hostile to virtually any forest conservation issue, clearly the worst anti-environment political climate in my

lifetime. The newly elected Bolsonaro administration in Brazil has rapidly dismantled Brazil’s institutional capacity to confront any threat against wild nature, while unleashing a

widespread sentiment of impunity to thousands of landowners as haphazard agricultural frontiers continue to expand.