"Our" lungs are burning

[ChristineM]

In the Amazon or elsewhere?

Brazil, its it Para, not Amazonia but there is no dotted line between them

 

[Vinayaka]

Brazil, its it Para, not Amazonia but there is no dotted line between them

I recall reading an article about how people were buying up tracts of rain forest for safe keeping. The article went on to show how locals didn't much care for the boundaries, and short of hiring armed guards to protect your land, they just came in and used it anyway. So my query is on how you keep it pristine?

 

[Stevicus]

I'm not the most sensitive person and there aren't many things that affect me enough to bring tears to my eyes, but today I cried.
I cried for the Amazon forest and the amount of life, plant & animal, that is being lost in the fires that have been burning for weeks. The lungs of planet earth are burning and yet, very little has been published about that in the press.
A few months ago everyone made a huge fuss about the Notre Dame Cathedral, which regardless of it's historical importance, is still just a building. The biggest forest in the world is disappearing and we almost don't hear about it.

'Record number of fires' in Brazilian rainforest

The article talked a bit about the possible causes of the fire. I don't know too much about Brazil's current leader, although the more I hear about him, I start to wonder. He's apparently blaming non-government organizations trying to undermine his government for setting the fires:

Mr Bolsonaro brushed off the latest data, saying it was the "season of the queimada", when farmers use fire to clear land. "I used to be called Captain Chainsaw. Now I am Nero, setting the Amazon aflame," he was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying.

Later he appeared to suggest that non-governmental organisations had set fires, as revenge for his government slashing their funding. He presented no evidence and gave no names to support this theory, saying there were "no written records about the suspicions".

"So, there could be..., I'm not affirming it, criminal action by these 'NGOers' to call attention against my person, against the government of Brazil. This is the war that we are facing," he said in a Facebook Live on Wednesday.

It's apparently a case of favoring development over environmental considerations. Bolsonaro blames the 'NGOers', presumably his political opponents, although the article also mentioned the possibility that some may be illegally setting the fires as a deliberate attempt to deforest the area for ranching.

Why is Bolsonaro being criticised?
The reports of a rise in forest fires come amid criticism over Mr Bolsonaro's environmental policies. Scientists say the Amazon has suffered losses at an accelerated rate since the president took office in January, with policies favouring development over conservation.

Over the past decade, previous governments had managed to reduce deforestation with action by federal agencies and a system of fines. But Mr Bolsonaro and his ministers have criticised the penalties and overseen a fall in confiscations of timber and convictions for environmental crimes.

Last month, the far-right president accused Inpe's director of lying about the scale of deforestation in the Amazon and trying to undermine the government. It came after Inpe published data showing an 88% increase in deforestation there in June compared to the same month a year ago.

The director of the agency later announced that he was being sacked amid the row.

Inpe has previously insisted that its data is 95% accurate. The agency's reliability has also been defended by several scientific institutions, including the Brazilian Academy of Sciences.

The sad thing is, I doubt that very much is actually going to be done about this.

But not to worry. Once humans all die off, then the Earth will likely recover eventually. Nature has a way of coming back. It'll certainly suck for us, but I'm confident that the Earth itself will survive.

 

[Cooky]

Every idea is a hopeless cause there. It should be called Hopeless America instead of South America.

 

[ChristineM]

I recall reading an article about how people were buying up tracts of rain forest for safe keeping. The article went on to show how locals didn't much care for the boundaries, and short of hiring armed guards to protect your land, they just came in and used it anyway. So my query is on how you keep it pristine?

Its far enough from habitation, other than that i just hope that the agent who checks every few months is honest.

 

[Vee]

It will turn out for the best, though the destruction by nature at first seems the work of a cruel magician it makes way for new beginnings and new life that will flourish and replenish continuing the eternal cycle of life and death.

Unfortunately it doesn't work like that with tropical forests.

 

[Stevicus]

Brazilian Farmers Believe They Have the Right to Burn the Amazon

On Monday, at about 3 p.m., the sky in Sao Paulo turned dark.

As rain began to fall in South America’s largest city, Leandro Matozo, a television reporter who lives on the city’s east side, noticed that the rain pooling in his mother’s garden was filled with soot. He filled up a plastic soda bottle with the rainwater and took a picture, which later went viral on Twitter. The water was black.

“The people in the big cities of Sao Paulo and Rio, they want us to live on picking Brazil nuts,” a farmer says. “That doesn’t put anyone’s kid in college”

"Old black water, keep on rollin'"

 

[Howard Is]

It will turn out for the best, though the destruction by nature at first seems the work of a cruel magician it makes way for new beginnings and new life that will flourish and replenish continuing the eternal cycle of life and death.

Native Americans used to intentionally set fire to forests, it helped get rid of underbrush and deadwood making hunting easier and was better for the overall health of the areas they were in.

Couple of points.

1.The fire area is as large as the eastern seaboard of Australia. Comparing that to the burning off practices of Native Americans is like comparing 4th of July fireworks to atomic weapons.

2. These forests produce 20% of earth’s oxygen. You may miss that when it’s gone.

3. Rainforests don’t regenerate in a hurry. In this case, probably never, because unlike the sustainable practices of various ethnic groups, this is being done by insane capitalists with no interest in caring for the environment.

4. If you have some money to invest, you could join in and make a killing.