The Amazon in Brazil is on fire - how bad is it?

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Thousands of fires are ravaging the Amazon rainforest in Brazil - the most intense blazes for almost a decade

 

The northern states of Roraima, Acre, Rondônia and Amazonas have been particularly badly affected.
Huge fires have also been burning across the border in Bolivia, devastating swaths of the country's tropical forest and savannah

Roraima saw a 141% increase, Acre 138%, Rondônia 115% and Amazonas 81%. Mato Grosso do Sul, further south, saw a 114% increase.

Amazonas, the largest state in Brazil, has declared a state of emergency.

However, 2019 is not the worst year in recent history. Brazil experienced more fire activity in the 2000s - with 2005 seeing more than 133,000 fires in the first eight months of the year.

Forest fires are common in the Amazon during the dry season, which runs from July to October. They can be caused by naturally occurring events, such as lightning strikes, but this year most are believed to have been started by farmers and loggers clearing land for crops or grazing.

The recent increase in the number of fires in the Amazon is directly related to intentional deforestation and not the result of an extremely dry season, according to the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (Ipam)

Other countries have also been affected

 

A number of other countries in the Amazon basin - an area spanning 7.4m sq km (2.9m sq miles) - have also seen a high number of fires this year.

Venezuela has experienced the second-highest number, with more than 26,000 fires, with Bolivia coming in third, with more than 19,000. This is a rise of 92% on last year. Peru, in fifth place, has seen a rise of 105%.