A Brazilian study shows that the number of fires detected in the entire Amazon region between 2003 and 2020 was influenced more by uncontrolled human use of fire than by drought.
A Brazilian study shows that the number of fires detected in the entire Amazon region between 2003 and 2020 was influenced more by uncontrolled human use of fire than by drought. According to the researchers, burning of vegetation to prepare areas for pasture and deforestation rather than extreme water deficits were the main cause of fire in most years with large numbers of fires.
On average, pasture and other agricultural land accounted for 32% of annual burned areas in the Amazon, followed by natural grasslands with 29% and old-growth forests with 16%.
Of the nine countries with areas of Amazon Rainforest, Brazil and Bolivia accounted together for most of the fires detected in the region annually, with more than half and about a third respectively.
Read more at: Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo
Brazilian study analyzed active fire occurrences between 2003 and 2020 in the nine countries with Amazon Rainforest areas. Brazil accounted on average for 73% of the fires detected in the period (Photo Credit: Liana Anderson/CEMADEN)
