The Amazon accounts for 90% of the burned area in Brazil in the first two months of 1

In the country's six biomes — Amazon, caatinga, Cerrado, Atlantic forest, Pampa e Pantanal –, in 536 thousand hectares, there were fires. As researcher Vera Arruda, from Ipam, highlights, the area is 28% smaller than that recorded in the first two months of 2022.

According to researcher Vera, in general, the rains that characterize the first months of the year in the country favor the reduction of fires. “Even so, there are many hectares burned, in a period of more rain”, says the researcher, who is part of the team responsible for the Fire Monitor.

Another particularity of the time is the high rate of occurrences in Roraima. The survey shows that fires in the state consumed 259 thousand hectares, that is, 48% of the total identified. 😮

“There is a type of vegetation that is more similar to the Cerrado. It’s not just forests, like in most of the Amazon,” explains Vera. In the states of Mato Grosso and Pará, the fire reached areas of 90 thousand and 70 thousand hectares, respectively. Together, if added to Roraima, they account for 79% of the fires detected by the project team.

O Cerrado comes in second place on the list, with 24 thousand hectares affected by fire. Asked about what the team considers a margin of tolerance regarding fires, when it comes to the biome, Vera comments that, in fact, the vegetation has adapted to the presence of fire.

(With Agency Brazil)

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