Charles Teves
- Liza Soberano and other celebrities show concern for the Amazon’s deforestation
- People are too ignorant to know that these fires are basically attempts to increase Brazil’s agricultural industry
The Amazon rainforest is dying and disappearing at an alarming rate. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is being blamed for burning the forest to make way for cattle and soy crops.
According to Brazil’s space research center, 74,000 fires have occurred in Brazil from January to August of this year, which is an increase of 84% from 2018. Half of these fires happened in the Amazon forest.
More fires are happening rapidly which could mean that the number is higher than 74,000.
It has been estimated that there are thousands of fire happening across the Amazon simultaneously.
People are outraged by what is happening but are unaware of some facts. Most people who bash Bolsonaro do not know that the fires are happening in areas that have already been cleared out before. Moreover, the fires are not wildfires. The Amazon is dense and wildfires are rare cases.
The fires that are happening are basically from “Slash and Burn Farming.” This is done to clear an area and convert it to agricultural land.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B1bkgYQh-TP/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
People do not know that the trees in the Amazon are cut down, left to dry, and then burned. The science behind this is that the soil in the Amazon is not that great since organisms are able to recycle organic material quickly so nutrients do not get absorbed in it.
Burning trees leaves ashes, and these ashes are used to grow new crops.
The deforestation is basically for new industries, space for pasture land, and cattle ranching, which makes up 80% of current rates.
The Amazon forest is on fire and it took 3 weeks for the world to realize the damage and threat to our planet- to treat it like a major EMERGENCY. Our planet cannot afford this. The Amazon has helped save us from more damage and now we’re watching it burn. This is a CRISIS!
— KC ~ also, Kristina. (@kristina) August 22, 2019
Bigger than life personalities from Emmanuel Macron to Leonardo Dicaprio have shown disgust with Brazil’s government for the deforestation.
Filipino celebrities also have expressed their feelings towards the whole situation.
Even when the Amazon forest is nearly invulnerable to wildfires, this is still a topic that concerns climate change.
Climate change is happening worldwide.
The Global Climate Risk Index 2015 listed the Philippines as the number one country most vulnerable to climate change. The country is surrounded by warm waters which will only get hotter as temperature increases. The additional heat released in the ocean and air are what causes damaging storms.
The Philippines’ geography plays a huge role in this matter. The country does not have enough barriers to separate it from the sea.
The best defense that the country has against typhoons are mangroves, but these mangroves have decreased in number since 1918 due to deforestation.
Scientists believe human activities cause climate change, that leads to at least 20 typhoons a year.
