Amazon Rainforest Fire

By Sarah Bayley and Sakura Jung

If you have been keeping up with the news lately you might have seen something about the Amazon rainforest fire. Now why are these fires so critical to nature? Think of it like this, the planet is the body and its forests/jungles are the lungs. If most of the “lungs” die then the “body” will die so it is important that we take care of our trees.

The amazon rainforest fire does not just affect the trees, but it can cause global temperatures to rise even more than they already have. Nature has at least a third of the solution to climate change, resolving the issues linked to the heat and if the fires don't stop, then carbon dioxide will not be absorbed making global warming worse. Many animals and ecosystems are suffering because of this fire, losing vital resources crucial for them to survive.

So far more than 1.8 million acres of the forest have burned and imagine how many animals have died or been injured in this fire. 6th grader Jenny Martinez says “Many animal species will die because of this fire.” Big animals have a better chance of escaping but smaller ones will most likely get trapped.Not only land animals are in danger but also fish species are at risk too. Every animal in it will disappear like the dinosaurs…

Mr.Beast has a project to plant 20 million trees for the #teamtrees project before 2020.This guy planned to do this project after a fan’s suggestion of how to celebrate his reaching of 20 million subscribers.



According to Express, if the amazon rainforest burned down, there would be less water in the air to be returned in the soil which also can cause soil erosion and can cause coastal flooding! The number of fires identified by the agency in the Amazon region is about 35 percent higher than the average since 2010. The fire was caused by humans and set accidentally or intentionally. (More detail in one of the following paragraphs)The smoke was visible from space!



Here we see an aerial view of the fire from usa today

President Bolsonaro of Brazil has declared he will build a bridge across the Amazon River and to increase a road to go to the border with Suriname. With the fire going on this means more trees going down and we already have more than trees lost in the fire. This would also mean less habitat for the animals and an unpleasant highway that will attract many fires and will eventually lead up to a destroyed road. A deathwish for a road and a forest.

Moreover, the fire has also affected the Yanomami tribe, with 20,000 total members in total. In this picture from newsweek we see forests burning down leaving nothing for these tribes.There are more tribes that live in the Amazon rainforest but this one is the largest, therefore making more people vulnerable to the fire. These people must have a place to sleep and what is their most used resource? Wood. So if the fire comes tumbling down their camp will be burnt to a crisp. Then the fire will not only be a problem for their tribes, it will be a problem for us all.

“Certain trees, ”according to 6th Grader Tea Morel, “are fanning the fire.” She says, “It’s on fire because of people who are planting palm oil trees.” She says that, “they are clearing it for palm oil. We suspect that they set one on fire then it sprung out of control.”

Another cause of the fire is beef. You might be thinking, “How does beef relate to this?” Brazil is one of the largest exporters of beef and beef pastures are mostly land that used to be rainforest cover. The broad majority of the fires have been set by loggers and ranchers to clear the ground for cattle.The farmers claim that the amazon is theirs to burn. They see it as progresses , thinking that there would be more space for them to work. Being the largest exporters of beef they probably think that they should get a lot of space so they burn it down.

“We need to expel any NGO that disturbs slows down and delays progress” Says a protestor in a small town in Brazil.

Farmers want more space so more and more cows can be able to roam. Some 90 percent of the land razed in the Amazon is done so to clear the way for cows.



Here in this picture from mamamia we see the cause of the fire. An innocent little cow.

Don't be too quick to put the blame on the farmers of Brazil, there are many more sources for why these fires are going on. Beef is just one of the main causes. There is also building. In a building site a truck could spark and set off a small fire and if nobody notices it the fire will get bigger and consume the entire forest leaving behind a dry wasteland of burnt trees and dead animals. Including that plus the beef situation this could be the worst deforestation we have seen in many years. The vast majority of the fires have been set by loggers and ranchers to clear land for cattle.

The earth is burning, as we watch along on our smartphone screens. It's happening whether we like it or not. The fire will spread and quickly the amazon rainforest will be known as the amazon desert. This planet is not dying it is being killed a slow painful death due to fires, burning fossil fuels in other words heating of the planet, yet it will continue to grow. This fire as shown in the picture from Fee is devastating and does not affect just a small group; it affects all of us.

The Amazon Rainforest is in real trouble…, cows prepare to be the cause of a mass deforestation, animals getting trapped (including fish), and leaving so many species dead.