Why Is the Amazon Rainforest Still Burning?
Even during the pandemic, the raging fires haven’t ceased. Here’s why.
Although most have moved on from the topic of wildfires in the Amazon, the problem has only gotten more out of hand. While you were not looking, millions of acres of the lush jungle have been chopped, flattened, and set ablaze, along with the natural wildlife. By the time COVID-19, as well as the other problems that you may consider more relevant, are solved, the damage will have already been done and millions of acres will have been burned for good.
It is not just an Amazon problem, either. In the US and Canada, forests have been ravaged by huge and widespread fires across the west. As more countries get more ambitions to develop, more land will be flattened, paved, and built upon, making environmental disaster more likely. Pretty soon, you may join the 6.2 million people who have been adversely affected by wildfires each year or have property destroyed by another runaway inferno.
But it’s no accident: most of the people responsible for the Amazon’s destruction know exactly what they’re doing. In fact, the unfortunate reality is these events were predictable and not entirely unprecedented.
But before jumping to any conclusions, the question that ought to be asked is: “How did it get to be like this?” To answer that, we have to look at the state of South America.
A House on Fire
When it comes to the topic of forest fires in the Amazon, many would point to Brazil as the main culprit, and deservedly so. They not only have burnt the most land, but people have been emboldened by president Jair Bolsonaro to continue without legal action. Bolsonaro has stated in the past that the Amazon is a “virgin” that must be “exploited” for its natural resources, and is a firm climate change denier.
This has an uncomfortable past with Brazil’s zany political climate. Once a brutal right-wing military dictatorship brought about in part due to US-backed regime change policies, it has since transitioned to a democracy. The only problem is that it is a democracy in name only: countless cases of corruption, from federal and local level, to the point where it’s almost a given, have dampened people’s outlook on whether an uncorrupted successful democracy will ever be a reality.
Influence in their elections by monied interests, like the Koch Brothers, the NRA, and fossil fuel companies, have built a right wing base which has continued to gain influence. One of their biggest beneficiaries? Jair Bolsonaro, labeled by many as “The Trump of the Tropics”, who took power the election after the unveiling of the largest case of political corruption in the country’s history (and that’s saying something), Operation Carwash, has sparked a wave of Brazilian populism and unrest.
Bolsonaro has served in the military and has been calling for the return of the military regime, saying that it brought “a more prosperous and sustainable Brazil”.
The largest drivers of Brazil’s economy have to do with the use of its natural resources, including precious metals, lumber, and fertile land for agriculture and farming. This is also mainly the case for the entire continent in general. It should come as no surprise, then, that the minute illegal burning was made unofficially “legal” by the leader of South America’s biggest nation, people looking for more resources and to make the big bucks were willing to clear it. In fact, history tells us they probably would succeed in making the land profitable.
Brazil’s economy has always been touted as the economy of the future. If just a few things changed, Brazil would be up there with the big boys. Of course, as much as what has been said about Brazil’s future prospects has never come to fruition: it has become a running joke in the country that they are “the future of the future”.
Problems that snag Brazil’s economy are numerous. Enormous wealth inequality has made many millionaires from the sale of resources while the majority saw peanuts, which wasn’t helped by the corrupt government. Worse, Brazil suffers from the Middle Income Trap: most have just enough money to be above poverty, but are considered too expensive for the advantages of having low-cost labor.
The casting of millions into this uncomfortable, economically immobile position has not been helped by the increase of employment and violent crime as more people become desperate. Additionally, some of Brazil’s cities can get claustrophobic, and the education system would need improvement to help people get the skills they need.
So give power to a right-winger hungry for the destruction of the Amazon and fond about the old days of military suppression and combine it with an unstable economy that has left many desperate for an end to all this corruption. What do we suppose will happen?
The Well Meaning Hypocrisy: Does it Make a Sound?
South America’s collective clearing of the Amazon has caught the ire of many nations worldwide. As expected, whenever one feels like the future of their country and by extension the world may be in great danger, it is obvious that they will speak out. It is also something that, in the grand scheme of things, is fairly easy to do.
Yet although these complaints are true and valid, as most normal people would agree with them myself included, there is an issue with them. You see, roughly a century or so ago, lush and immense forests covered France, Germany, the UK, and most of Northern and Central Europe. Only a century ago, in 1919, England. Why was this? Due to WWI, the demand for lumber spiked and it was hard to get lumber in from other countries. At one point, just 5% of Great Britain’s land was forest. Denmark, Russia, and Canada are currently vying for ownership of the Arctic Ocean due to the large deposits of fossil fuels under the Arctic sea bed.
America is perhaps one of the biggest culprits. Since settlers started in 1600, over 75% of the US virgin forest has been destroyed. Again, the main reason land was cleared was for development, agriculture, and livestock farming, all of which has tarnished the once pristine and beautiful American heartland. Government legislature like the Homestead Act led to the destruction of millions of acres of forest as settlers came in search of a better life. The American bison and bald eagle have nearly gone extinct as a result of reckless and unregulated environmental behavior. Lots of US cities were and still are suffering from terrible pollution as a result of continued air pollution by fossil fuels (ask any LA, New York, or Pittsburgh native). The US currently is the largest consumer of energy per capita and has continued to drag its feet on climate change action. When it comes to the environment, we’ve gone through it all.
Additionally, many nations have touted their strong frontiers towards climate change while continuing the activity that makes the climate worse. For example, Canada has told us it will move toward a greener future and fight climate change, while oil sands and other “dirty” energy revenue still remains one of the largest parts of Canada’s economy. Despite the great innovation taking place, economic interests once again come before environmental ones, and the people pulling the strings will continue to do so while convincing themselves that they are right.
The only difference between the Europe and America of yesteryear and the Brazils, Indias, Malaysias, and more of today? The only real difference is when the deforestation took place. Back when developed nations were building themselves up, using up resources inefficiently left and right and massively polluting the air and water, there were no world powers to see it. Trees were falling in the wood, but no one else on Earth had the ability to hear them. Are we all supposed to pretend that we never heard them, and that the advantages gained from cutting them down at scale are not one of the reasons why developed countries are considered “developed” today?
Although it is useless to get into the weeds about whatabaoutisms, to act as if one is immune to any accountability involving deforestation, despite being one of the biggest culprits of it, is also useless. To truly tackle climate change would be to take the lead and start to transition now, even if not politically or economically expedient, and start the collective rejection of fossil fuels and drastic deforestation. Perhaps then the monolithic power and political influence from established fossil fuels can be unseated just enough for real change to happen.
The Knock-On Effect
Other South American countries are seeing the landgrab and following suit of their larger neighbor. Colombia, a much smaller country than Brazil, has seen 1.8 million acres of Amazon illegally burned in the last 3 years, with many national parks in danger. The main reason? Cattle farming and agriculture. Last year, on August 19th, a gigantic black cloud enveloped Sao Paulo in darkness. Despite many thinking it was the second coming of Jesus, the deadly black fog was attributed to the sheer amount of soot that was created from the decimation of the Amazon. In Delhi, India, the air becomes nearly unbreathable for a few months due to farmers in the mountains burning off crops and the particles being swept through the air into the city below.
Negative environmental impacts are already being seen in South America, and they soon will be seen around the world. The only problem is that no one with influence to do something cares enough to take actions based on the root causes of the problem.
This is not an explanation or an excuse for Brazilians, or any nation for that matter, for continuing the destruction. But seismic events like these never come from out of blue. Similar to how tech companies can predict what you will buy next based on what you bought previously, events like these are often dependent on previous events. It doesn’t take a master’s or PHD to figure out that everything is cause and effect.
I didn’t write this article to justify the rape and pillage of natural land and the destruction of resources by South American nations. Nor, on the other hand, does this mean already developed nations have an excuse to criticize others trying to emulate their success. It is undoubtedly certain that solutions will be created by assistance rather than derision. The lack of forests and increase of climate destruction worldwide will be a security threat that will make terrorists jealous at the sheer amount of widespread damage it can inflict to innocent people. What’s the point of collecting natural resources if everyone is dying from air pollution, mostly people who are already poor?
It’s clear to everyone that the burning of the Amazon is pressing and has led to catastrophe already. Why don’t the nations that criticize others, even if their criticisms are valid, somehow can incentivize Brazil, Colombia, and others to keep their forests pristine while also not being hypocrites and allowing them to gain economically? The public will is already there: strong leadership and political will is what’s needed. Certainly the powers of subsidies, support, or even the Invisible Hand can get countries to cooperate in South America and worldwide. Because if they cannot, we may seriously need to rethink what the current system rewards and who it benefits.
In fact, the worst part about all of this is that they are destroying their one golden ticket to becoming a developed nation. The one thing that would have fostered smart people and educational institutions and make South America the innovation capital of the world. A scientist’s paradise and the historian’s nirvana, South America will be where the next biomedical and environmental breakthroughs take place. The chance to make Brazil like America in all the good ways, and to build a better life for its citizens and solve the world’s biggest problems. So many opportunities!
I’ll cover those in a Part II.
If you made it to the end, thank you I appreciate it! I would appreciate a clap or share or something to show support because this one took a while. I will continue to share new articles on LinkedIn so make sure to stay tuned.
