Number of fires detected per year in the Brazilian Amazon since 1998 (Gabriela VAZ/AFP/AFP)
By AFP - Agence France Presse
'No more fires', say Amazon residents
Anna PELEGRI
Giovana Serrao was not at home when a fire in a neighboring farm field got out of control and destroyed her açaí palm trees on the island of Marajó in the Brazilian Amazon.
Paulinho dos Santos remembers the nights in November when he would jump out of bed to use buckets of water to put out the flames that threatened his farm.
And Maria Leão's two daughters suffered from sinusitis, caused by a cloud of smoke that for weeks enveloped Breves, the largest town on the island, surrounded by sea and rivers in the north of the state of Pará.
Like them, many residents have felt the impact of the fires in the Brazilian Amazon, which had more than 140,000 fires in 2024 - the highest number in 17 years.
The situation was worst in the state of Pará, whose capital Belém will host the COP30 climate conference in November, with more than 56,000 fires during the peak of the burning crisis last year.
According to scientists, fires are linked to global warming, which dries out vegetation and makes it more flammable.
But they are almost always started by people clearing land for grazing or agriculture, or for illegal logging.
- 'Intolerable' - You can't help but say
“We lived through weeks that were intolerable. We couldn't even leave the house because there was zero visibility. The medical center was full of patients with respiratory problems,” says Zairo Gomes, a 51-year-old teacher and a prominent civil society figure in Breves.
At the time, the air quality monitor at the city's federal university recorded 480 micrograms per cubic meter of harmful fine particulate matter (PM2.5), far exceeding the WHO limit of 15 per hour.
Breves, a poor town of 107,000 inhabitants, depends mainly on its river port which links Marajó to Belém, the state capital.
Unemployment is widespread and a large part of the population depends on the cultivation of açaí, a staple of the Pará diet.
The authorities were notably absent during the fire crisis that lasted two months, from October to November, notes Gomes.
The city's open-air garbage dumps, full of vultures amid a strong stench, reflect the lack of sanitation.
When contacted, neither the mayor nor the environment secretary responded to AFP's requests for information.
- Right to breathe
The wave of fires has provoked an unprecedented popular mobilization.
“We've achieved something crucial: citizens have started talking about the environment, climate change and arson. We stopped suffering passively,” says Gomes.
This led to the creation of a collective called “Breves Calls for Help: The Right to Breathe”, which meets regularly to put pressure on the authorities and prevent similar destruction during the dry season, which begins every July.
“We want more resources for the local firefighters, who are overstretched, and punishment for those responsible,” said Maria Leao, a 50-year-old midwife and activist.
Greenpeace data highlights that most fires in the Amazon go unpunished, and less than 1% of the fines levied are paid.
- 'Resources are lacking'
“There is a lack of resources to fight the fires and arrest those responsible,” admitted Lieutenant Colonel Luciano Morais, from the Breves Military Police barracks.
This year, “we have only made two arrests”, because proving responsibility is “very difficult” since the fires are usually started at night, he said.
At those times, the forces “avoid entering the forest. And nobody wants to talk,” either out of fear or ignorance, he admitted.
Outside his farm on the outskirts of the city, Paulinho dos Santos, 65, said he doesn't know who started the fires that kept him awake at night.
“Maybe it's for the best because I could have done something reckless,” he said, still shaken.
The pensioner lost 40% of his land to vegetation, although his house and chicken coop survived.
- The same fight
Serrao, however, pointed to his neighbor, who destroyed his açaí plantation while burning his land for cultivation.
“The police spoke to him, but he's still there,” said the 45-year-old.
Serrao and her husband planted their palm trees seven years ago with a bank loan that they were finally about to pay off by selling açaí to schools in Breves.
“Now we don't know what we're going to do,” she said, standing among the charred trees.
Next to her, Gomes added: “We need to organize and unite with the neighboring towns that are also seeking help. We're in the same fight. No more fires!”
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