Amazon Fires. They're Still Going On.

by Autumn Pecarovich

Hurricane Dorian has taken the stage in the media pushing the Amazon fires to the side. However, the fires have continued for the last six weeks, destroying the Amazon rainforest in Brazil and other surrounding areas. This will have adverse effects on the environment, increase the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and affect storm formation.

Often times fires in the Amazon naturally occur due to lightning strikes and the clearing of land for agricultural purposes. Lots of this cleared land is used to raise cattle. Doing this takes away main oxygen producers for our environment, and replaces it with large carbon emitters. Some activists think Jair Bolsonaro, the Brazilian President, is responsible because he has encouraged clear-cutting. He responded to this accusation by saying non-governmental organizations started the fires to damage his government’s reputation.

Concern about the Earth’s future has grown due to these fires, but many of the photos posted under the hashtag #PrayforAmazonia are from the wrong location or not current photos of the fires.

To find out what Minarets Agriculture teachers thought of this environmental crisis Keeley Hall and Richard Chapman were interviewed. Ag teacher Keeley Hall stated, “I had no idea that fires were still going on. I knew that it was happening but only from reading the headlines of articles and from the news.” Ag teacher Richard Chapman had a unique perspective with his past in firefighting.When asked if he knew the fires were still going on he said, “I never heard that they were put out.” Chapman agreed that fire has its place in the natural cycle of forests and in adding mineral content back into the soil. He continued, “But, this isn’t the best method. Policy needs to be put into place to protect these areas.”

The Amazon rainforest plays a critical role in combating the adverse effects of climate change, by absorbing carbon emissions. However, when these trees are burned the carbon they absorbed releases into the atmosphere. Large amounts of carbon dioxide have been released into the atmosphere and has already reached about 228 megatons this year.

With continued concerns being vocalized change will be brought about. We as consumers can vote with our dollar by decreasing the demand for imported products from Brazil. For

example, McDonald's uses meat from Brazil which encourages them to further replace forests with cattle. The fires may seem like they are a world away, but this is our world, and it's in danger.

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