2024 Brazil wildfires

Last updated
2024 Brazil wildfires
Location Pantanal, Cerrado, Amazon rainforest
Statistics
Total fires13,489
Total area>760,000 hectares (1.8 million acres)

In 2024, 13,489 severe wildfires burned 32,000 hectares of tropical wetland in Brazil's Pantanal in Mato Grosso do Sul and several more areas in the Cerrado and Amazon. According to satellite data from the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research, the number of fires from 2024's beginning to 10 June showed a 935% increase compared to the same period in 2023 with 1,315 fires being reported compared to 127 fires in 2023. [1] [2]

Contents

Background

Climate scientists noted that the 2024 Brazil wildfire season started earlier than typical seasons which start around July, and was also more intense this year due to decreased rainfall in certain regions leading to prolonged drought. [3] Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva pledged to stop illegal deforestation in the Amazon by 2030 to help reduce the impact of global warming. [2]

Wildfires

On 1 July, collected satellite data indicated that at least 13,489 wildfires had occurred since the start of the year, the most amount of wildfires in the first half of the year in 20 years, and up 61% from 2023. Brazilian Greenpeace spokesman Romulo Batista stated that global warming and decreased rainfall created dryer environments that caused vegetation to be more dry and thus be more susceptible to spreading fires. [2]

Pantanal

Throughout the first two weeks of June, 2,639 fires burned 32,000 hectares of the Pantanal wetlands, six times the highest number of fires in the region for June compared to any prior year. [4] The number rose to over 760,000 hectares (1.8 million acres) by 9 July, burning over 4% of the 16.9 million hectares (42 million acres) of wetland. Massive areas of land bearing thick shrubbery and wildlife were burnt into a "carpet of white ash" with pieces of debris rising and falling around the affected areas. The intensity and range of the wildfires were exacerbated by strong winds blowing at up to 40 km per hour. [5] The prominent fires threatened many of the natural fauna including anteaters, jaguars, tapirs, caimans, and anacondas. A total of 3,538 wildfires were recorded in the region up to 1 July, up 40% compared to 2020, the year with the most wildfires in the region. Efforts to extinguish the fires were complicated by high winds and the terrain of the wetlands making access and movement difficult. [1] [2]

The smoke from the wildfires caused several hospitals in Corumbá to fill with victims of smoke inhalation and respiratory symptoms, affecting children <5 years old) and senior citizens over 65 the worst. Animal rescue workers reported hundreds of animals were killed due to smoke inhalation and burns, which included frogs, snakes, monkeys, and jaguars. [5]

Cerrado

The Cerrado had 13,229 wildfires occur in the first half of the year. The widespread fires caused the sky to fill with smoke clouds and turn a red color, according to residents. [2]

Response

In April, state authorities of Mato Grosso do Sul proclaimed an "environmental state of emergency" due to low levels of rainfall disrupting the usual seasonal flooding, exacerbating conditions for potential wildfires in many parts of the region. [1]

Mato Grosso do Sul's state government would then issue an emergency declaration on 24 June. Brazil's federal government increased the size of its wildfire response taskforce, while Brazil's air force dropped 48,000 litres of water on July 6-7. Firefighter Cabo Sena reported that wildfires would often reignite within 24 hours of them being put out. Fire prevention leaflets were distributed to local civilians in the region of the wildfires, with several experts and citizens requesting that Brazil's government invests more in fire prevention education. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Brazil</span>

The country of Brazil occupies roughly half of South America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. Brazil covers a total area of 8,514,215 km2 (3,287,357 sq mi) which includes 8,456,510 km2 (3,265,080 sq mi) of land and 55,455 km2 (21,411 sq mi) of water. The highest point in Brazil is Pico da Neblina at 2,994 m (9,823 ft). Brazil is bordered by the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela, and French Guiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amazon rainforest</span> Large rainforest in South America

The Amazon rainforest, also called Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin encompasses 7,000,000 km2 (2,700,000 sq mi), of which 6,000,000 km2 (2,300,000 sq mi) are covered by the rainforest. This region includes territory belonging to nine nations and 3,344 formally acknowledged indigenous territories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mato Grosso</span> State of Brazil

Mato Grosso is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest by area, located in the Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 1.9% of the Brazilian GDP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mato Grosso do Sul</span> State of Brazil

Mato Grosso do Sul is one of Brazil's 27 federal units, located in the southern part of the Central-West Region, bordering five Brazilian states: Mato Grosso, Goiás and Minas Gerais (northeast), São Paulo (east) and Paraná (southeast); and two South America countries: Paraguay and Bolivia (west). It is divided into 79 municipalities and covers an area of 357,145.532 square kilometers, which is about the same size as Germany. With a population of 2,839,188 inhabitants in 2021, Mato Grosso do Sul is the 21st most populous state in Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campo Grande</span> Capital city of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Campo Grande is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul in the Center-West region of the country. The city is nicknamed Cidade Morena because of the reddish-brown colour of the region's soil. It has a population of 898,100, according to a 2022 IBGE census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuiabá</span> Capital city of Mato Grosso, Brazil

Cuiabá is the capital city of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso. It is located near the geographical centre of South America. Also, it forms the metropolitan area of Mato Grosso, along with the neighbouring town of Várzea Grande. The city's name is an indigenous Bororo word meaning 'arrow-fishing', The city was founded in 1719, during the gold rush, and it has been the state capital since 1818. The city is a trading centre for an extensive cattle-raising and agricultural area. The capital is among the fastest-growing cities in Brazil, followed by the growth of agribusiness in Mato Grosso, despite the recession that is affecting Brazilian industries. Cuiabá was one of the host cities for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pantanal</span> Tropical wetland in Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay

The Pantanal is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area, and the world's largest flooded grasslands. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and portions of Bolivia and Paraguay. It sprawls over an area estimated at between 140,000 and 195,000 km2. Various subregional ecosystems exist, each with distinct hydrological, geological, and ecological characteristics; up to 12 of them have been defined.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central-West Region, Brazil</span> Region in Brazil

The Central-West or Center-West Region of Brazil is composed of the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul; along with Distrito Federal, where Brazil's national capital, Brasília, is situated. The region comprises 18.86% of the national territory, and is the least populated in Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amazônia Legal</span> Socio-geographic division in Brazil

Amazônia Legal, also known as Brazil's Legal Amazon (BLA), is the largest socio-geographic division in Brazil, containing all nine states in the Amazon basin. The government designated this region in 1948 based on its studies on how to plan the economic and social development of the Amazon region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emas National Park</span> UNESCO World Heritage Site in Goiás, Brazil

The Emas National Park is a national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the states of Goiás and Mato Grosso do Sul in Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deforestation in Brazil</span>

Brazil once had the highest deforestation rate in the world and in 2005 still had the largest area of forest removed annually. Since 1970, over 700,000 square kilometres (270,000 sq mi) of the Amazon rainforest have been destroyed. In 2001, the Amazon was approximately 5,400,000 square kilometres (2,100,000 sq mi), which is only 87% of the Amazon's original size. According to official data, about 729,000 km² have already been deforested in the Amazon biome, which corresponds to 17% of the total. 300,000 km² have been deforested in the last 20 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serra da Bodoquena National Park</span> National park in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Serra da Bodoquena National Park is a national park in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.

Taiamã Ecological Station is an ecological station in the Mato Grosso state of Brazil.

Rio Ronuro Ecological Station is an ecological station in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. It protects an area of contact between Amazon rainforest in the north and Cerrado semi-deciduous forest in the south. Since being created in 1998 it has been reduced in size and has suffered from significant deforestation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campos Amazônicos National Park</span> National park in Brazil

The Campos Amazônicos National Park is a National park in the states of Rondônia, Amazonas and Mato Grosso, Brazil.

The Serra de Santa Bárbara State Park is a state park in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. It preserves a unique environment where the Amazon rainforest, pantanal and cerrado meet, and holds many endemic or endangered species.

The Nascentes do Rio Taquari State Park is a state park in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. It protects the headwaters of the Taquari River in an area in the transition between the cerrado and pantanal biomes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mato Grosso tropical dry forests</span> Ecoregion in central Brazil

The Mato Grosso tropical dry forests (NT0140), also called the Mato Grosso seasonal forests, is an ecoregion in central Brazil to the south of the Amazon region. It contains vegetation in the transition between the Amazon rainforest to the north and the cerrado savanna to the south. The opening of highways through the region has caused rapid population growth, deforestation and pollution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires</span> Wildfires in Brazil

The 2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires season saw a year-to-year surge in fires occurring in the Amazon rainforest and Amazon biome within Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Peru during that year's Amazonian tropical dry season. Fires normally occur around the dry season as slash-and-burn methods are used to clear the forest to make way for agriculture, livestock, logging, and mining, leading to deforestation of the Amazon rainforest. Such activity is generally illegal within these nations, but enforcement of environmental protection can be lax. The increased rates of fire counts in 2019 led to international concern about the fate of the Amazon rainforest, which is the world's largest terrestrial carbon dioxide sink and plays a significant role in mitigating global warming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Brazil rainforest wildfires</span> Wildfires in Brazil

The 2020 Brazil rainforest wildfires were a series of forest fires that were affecting Brazil, with 44,013 outbreaks of fires registered between January and August in the Amazonas and Pantanal. Within the Amazon, 6,315 outbreaks of fire were detected in the same period. Within the Pantanal, the volume of fires is equivalent to those of the past six years and there have been actions by NGOs and volunteers to save endangered animals, such as the jaguar. It was expected that the health systems of the Amazon region, already overloaded by the COVID-19 pandemic, would be even more overloaded due to respiratory diseases due to smoke emitted by the wildfires.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Buschschlüter, Vanessa (10 June 2024). "Brazil wildfires: Parts of Pantanal wetlands ablaze amid drought". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Genot, Louis (2 July 2024). "Brazil's Amazon sees worst 6 months of wildfires in 20 years". phys.org. Retrieved 2024-07-09.
  3. Paraguassu, Lisandra (6 June 2024). "Fires in Brazilian wetlands surge 980%, extreme drought expected". Reuters. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
  4. "Brazil's Amazon rainforest sees worst 6 months of wildfires in 20 years, data shows". France 24. 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2024-07-09.
  5. 1 2 3 Barber, Harriet (2024-07-09). "Devastation as world's biggest wetland burns: 'those that cannot run don't stand a chance'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2024-07-10.