Celebrated this Friday (05), Amazon Day takes place at a time when the biome is suffering from fires and a drought that, according to predictions, could be the worst in history.
The date was created to raise awareness about the importance of the region and the biome, the Amazon rainforest and the country’s biodiversity. The date was established by law 11.621 in December 2007. The date also honors the creation of the Province of Amazonas in 1850.
Home to the largest tropical forest in the world, with seven million square kilometers, including five and a half million square kilometers of forest, the place is fundamental to the planet’s climatic environment.
The Amazon is facing a worrying increase in the number of fires, early drought and falling river levels. The data warns of the consequences and effects that the region may suffer.
Burns
The state of Amazonas is one of the most affected by fires in the region. If, from today onwards, no more fires were recorded in Amazonas, 2024 would still be among the five worst years since the beginning of the historical series, recorded since 1998 by INPE.
According to data from the Queimadas Program, from the National Institute for Space Research (INPE), the Amazon has already registered 16,447 fire outbreaks in 2024.
In the first four days of September alone, there were 1,212. In August, there were 10,328 – around 186% more than the monthly average of 3,606 registered outbreaks. The result for August is the worst in history.
The last three years point to a growing increase in outbreaks. Between 2021 and 2023 there were 55,669, compared to 40,851 in the period from 2018 to 2020. An increase of 36% in records.
Experts warn that the intensification of the fires is causing the “flying rivers” – the name given to the air currents that transport humidity from the Amazon to other regions of South America – to turn into immense corridors of smoke. The system is giving way to haze that is affecting several states in Brazil.
The climatic phenomenon, essential for the rain cycle on the continent, now carries smoke particles that can even be seen from space, worsening the environmental crisis and air quality in areas far from the forest.
Drought could be the worst in history
The combination of high temperatures and rainfall below the historical average, after an extremely dry year, brings predictions of record drought in the Amazon in 2023.
According to José Marengo, Research and Development Coordinator at the National Center for Monitoring and Alerting Natural Disasters (Cemaden), the state’s rivers never recovered to the same levels after last year’s drought. The low level of rainfall at the expected time did not compensate for last year’s drought.
In his statement, the researcher explains that more rain was expected in the second half of this year with the arrival of the La Niña phenomenon. However, the waters of the Pacific have not yet cooled as expected, which, combined with the lack of rain, creates a catastrophic situation for the Amazon.
Throughout the region, according to the Brazilian Geological Service (SGB) forecast bulletins, rivers are dropping rapidly and the effects of drought are already beginning to be felt in riverside communities and in the region’s transport.
Entire communities are already isolated due to the lack of navigability of rivers. In addition to damaging crops and fishing, excessively low rivers prevent residents from traveling to buy food.
In Manaus, the Negro River is 19.00 meters deep, down from 23.04 meters at the same time in 2023. The situation is worrying businesspeople in the region.
The Amazonas government has already declared a drought emergency in 62 municipalities in the state, and more than 75 thousand families have already been affected by the lack of water and food.
Increased notifications
According to data from TerraBrasilis – a web platform developed by INPE for access, consultation, analysis and dissemination of data – between January 1st and August 23rd, 2,954 deforestation warnings issued in the Amazon . This corresponds to an area of 620.47 km² deforested . The worst day of the year saw 36.39 km² of deforestation, on May 31st.
Deforestation with exposed soil, when vegetation is removed from a given location, was carried out in 579.10 km². In addition to altering the landscape, this action contributes to the weakening of the soil.
The municipalities with the largest areas of deforestation are the municipalities of Novo Aripuana, Apui and Labrea, with 118.58, 101.28 and 91.14 km² deforested, respectively.
The protected areas with the largest deforestation area are the Tefé National Forest with 2.14 km² of deforested area. Next come the Urupadi National Forest and the Campos Amazônicos National Park, with 1.12 km² and 0.87 km², respectively.
The 2024 data shows an increase in notifications but a decrease in the deforested area, compared to the 2023 data, in the same period. Between January 1 and August 23, 2023, 2,885 deforestation notices were issued in Amazonas. During the period, an area of 707.52 km² was also deforested.
Rondônia also suffers
The capital Porto Velho has been covered in a thick haze of smoke, resulting from the fires that have hit the Amazon region. The city has been experiencing very poor air quality since the beginning of August.
On the 15th of last month, at least four flights that were destined for the capital of Rondônia had to be canceled or diverted due to the city’s weather conditions.
According to data from the IQAir platform, the city’s air quality was considered dangerous. The fine particle index, used to measure this rate, was 384.3 micrograms per cubic meter early this afternoon (29). This number is about 77 times above the limit recommended by the WHO (World Health Organization).
Rondônia is experiencing a serious environmental situation, aggravated by the lack of rain and the intensification of the El Niño phenomenon. In August alone, there was a 23.7% increase in fire outbreaks in the state.
This content was originally published in Amazon Day has a region suffering from drought and fires on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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