Brazil’s Amazon fires have now hit an all-time record high

The total number of fires has now reached 72,843 this year.

It's true, forest fires are a natural occurrence and are essential for maintaining a healthy ecosystem, however, concerns are continuing to grow in relation to what's currently happening in the Amazon. INPE, that's Brazil's National Institute for Space Research, has calculated an 83 per cent increase in fires compared to the same period in 2018. Concerns are growing as the Amazon is a crucial carbon store for our planet, but that's certainly not all. It's also home to approximately three million species of plants and animals (that we know of) and around one million indigenous people whose lives are at risk. While it's estimated that every minute, an area the size of a football pitch is destroyed in the Amazon rainforest, conservationists are particularly worried now as there's little effort being made to tackle the problem that is likely accelerating. It's no secret that vast amounts of land are destroyed to make room for grazing livestock,  agriculture and mining — something conservationists continue to blame Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro for encouraging. According to the BBC, he has criticised the INPE director for undermining the Brazilian government and lying about the true scale of deforestation. The president later dismissed him from employment at the research centre. Then there's the landmark free trade deal between the EU and the South American bloc Mercosur (which includes Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela and Brazil) which Brazil agreed to just last month. The deal means that Latin America is to follow the Paris climate agreement which President Bolsonaro threatens to pull out of. So, from an international relations point of view, it might not be looking great either.