Eduardo Riedel associates forest fires with climate change and says it was not people’s “conscience” that made it worse
The governor of Mato Grosso do Sul, Eduardo Riedel (PSDB), reported this Monday (June 17, 2024) that 350 thousand hectares of the Pantanal have already been affected by fires in 2024. There is an increase of 1,800% in the burned area compared to 2023. The volume of fire outbreaks has also increased.
Riedel made a comparison with 2020, during the “biggest disaster from the point of view of fires”, according to the governor, when around 3.5 million hectares were affected. The statements were made in an interview with CNN Brazil.
According to the head of the state Executive, most of the affected areas are private.
The toucan associated the number of fires with climate change and denied that the phenomenon had to do with a worsening of the climate. “conscience” people’s environment.
“What happened from last year to this year? Has people’s conscience worsened? No, [foi] the climatic condition. It is important to emphasize this: we are dealing with a very atypical drought condition in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul”he declared.
Riedel also stated that the president’s government Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) has been following “closely” the situation of the State.
He cited the signing of agreements with the Minister of the Environment, Marina Silvaand said that he will meet with the extraordinary secretary of Deforestation Control and Territorial Environmental Planning, André Lima, to discuss the next actions.
BURNS IN THE PANTANAL
According to the governor, the State has been preparing for the forest fire season since January. Riedel stated that the region had already started the month of May with low river levels, due to the drought.
However, according to him, the season started “too early” and in a way “very aggressive”with an intensification of fire outbreaks in the last 20 days.
The Pantanal recorded the highest number of fire outbreaks for the month of June since 1998, when the index began to be recorded by the Inpe (National Institute for Space Research).
With a size of 150,355 km², the Pantanal is one of the largest continuous humid areas in the world. Of its area, 65% are in the territory of Mato Grosso do Sul and 35% in Mato Grosso.
Until May this year, the biome lost 1,276 km² for the fire. In 2023, the same period saw a loss of 120 km². In comparison, land lost to flames grew by 963%.
Since 2019, the biome has recorded a change in rainfall patterns, which are modulated according to the South American summer monsoon. In 2020, for example, the region faced a prolonged drought, with the lowest rainfall since the 1980s .
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