Page 8 - ARUBA TODAY

A8 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 27 augusT 2019
G-7 nations pledge $40 million to fight Amazon fires

By LUIS ANDRES HENAO Europe to develop alter-
CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA nate sources of protein.
Associated Press Bolsonaro has accused Ma-
PORTO VELHO, Brazil (AP) cron of treating the region
— The Group of Seven na- "as if we were a colony."
tions on Monday pledged Bolsonaro has announced
tens of millions of dollars to he would send 44,000 sol-
help fight raging wildfires in diers to help battle the
the Amazon and protect blazes, and military planes
its rainforest, even as Brazil- began dumping water on
ian President Jair Bolsonaro fires in the Amazon state of
accused rich countries of Rondonia.
treating the region like a The move was welcomed
"colony." by many critics, but some
The international pledges say it's not enough and
at a G-7 summit in France comes too late.
included $20 million from In violating environmen-
the group, as well as a tal agreements, Brazil has
separate $12 million from been discredited and "un-
Britain and $11 million from able to exercise any type
Canada. Ottawa has also of leadership on the inter-
offered to send firefighting national stage," said Mauri-
planes to Brazil. A fire burns along the road to Jacunda National Forest, near the city of Porto Velho in the Vila cio Santoro, an internation-
Other groups are contrib- Nova Samuel region which is part of Brazil's Amazon, Monday, Aug. 26, 2019. al relations professor at Rio
uting support for a region Associated Press de Janeiro State University.
whose rainforests are a Critics say the large num-
major absorber of carbon tion officer at the Wildlife groups might have start- his health. Smoke rose from ber of fires this year has
dioxide from the atmo- Conservation Society. ed the fires in an effort to nearby trees as he spoke. been stoked by Bolsonaro's
sphere. Earth Alliance, a Brazil needs "legislation and damage the credibility of "I don't think there are encouragement of farm-
new environmental foun- regulations that set clear his government, which has enough people to extin- ers, loggers and ranchers to
dation backed by Leon- limits preventing landown- called for looser environ- guish the fires," said Cor- speed efforts to strip away
ardo DiCaprio, is pledging ers — especially large ones mental regulations in the deiro, who lives in the Alvo- forest. Although Bolsonaro
$5 million in aid, saying the — from burning the forest world's largest rainforest to rada da Amazonia region. has now vowed to protect
Amazon is one of the "best and converting it to ag- spur development. He said it was difficult to the area, they say it is only
defenses" against climate riculture and rangeland, "We believe that there are breath at night because of out of fear of a diplomatic
change. backed by incentives and many mining companies the smoke. crisis and economic losses.
The funds are widely seen investment in alternatives," and lumber companies Another man, Antonio de Fires are common during
as critical support, but a Robinson said. and farmers who feel that Jesus, was also worried. Brazil's dry season, but the
relatively small amount for The international pledges the president has their "Nature shouldn't be killed numbers surged this year.
dealing with an environ- came despite tensions be- backs," said Raoni Metuk- off like that," he said. The country's National
mental crisis of such scale tween European countries tire, a Brazilian indigenous Macron said the Amazon, Space Research Institute,
threatening what French and the Brazilian president, chief and environmental- while mostly Brazilian, is a which monitors deforesta-
President Emmanuel Ma- who suggested the West ist who traveled to the G-7 world issue and that his tion, has recorded more
cron called "the lungs of was angling to exploit Bra- summit in Biarritz. message to Bolsonaro is: than 77,000 wildfires in Bra-
the planet." zil's natural resources. In response, European "We cannot allow you to zil this year, a record since
More than $1 billion, for ex- "Look, does anyone help leaders threatened to destroy everything." the institute began keep-
ample, has been paid into anyone ... without some- block a major trade deal Brazil's sovereignty must be ing track in 2013. That is an
a fund to help the Amazon thing in return? What have with Brazil that would ben- respected, Macron said, 85% rise over last year, and
in the past decade. And they wanted there for so efit the very agricultural in- but the world can help about half of the fires have
major donors Germany long?" Bolsonaro said. terests accused of driving Brazil reforest and build its been in the Amazon re-
and Norway recently cut Bolsonaro has insulted ad- deforestation. economy "while respecting gion — with more than half
donations to Brazilian for- versaries and allies, dispar- The impact of the fires and the natural balance." of those coming just in the
estry projects, saying Bol- aged women, black and smoke has disrupted life About 60 percent of the past month. Rómulo Ba-
sonaro's administration isn't gay people, and praised for many in the Amazon Amazon region is in Brazil; tista, a member of Green-
committed to curbing de- his country's 1964-1985 dic- region. The airport in Porto the vast forest also spans peace Brazil's Amazonia
forestation. tatorship. But nothing has Velho, the capital of Ron- parts of Bolivia, Colom- Campaign, said "the rise
It was unclear how exactly rallied more anger at home donia state, was closed for bia, Venezuela, Ecuador, in deforestation can com-
the new money would be and criticism from abroad more than an hour Mon- French Guiana, Guyana, pletely alter the rain pat-
administered. Bureaucracy than his response to the day morning because of Peru and Suriname. terns by region and dev-
can slow and reduce the fires in parts of the Amazon poor visibility. On Sunday, Speaking on French TV af- astate agriculture, even
amount that reaches pro- region. a soccer match of a lower- ter hosting the G-7 summit, in South America." Brazil's
grams in the field. Brazil's The Brazilian leader says he tier national league was Macron acknowledged federal police agency an-
environment minister, Ri- is committed to protecting briefly suspended because that Europe, by import- nounced that it would in-
cardo Salles, said the aid the Amazon and prosecut- of smoke in Rio Branco, ing soya from Brazil, shares vestigate reports that farm-
was welcome and that Bra- ing anyone involved in il- capital of Acre state, as fire some blame for the agricul- ers in Para state had called
zil should decide how the legal fires, many of which burned in a field outside tural pressure on the rain- for "a day of fire" on Aug.
resources are used. appear to be to have the stadium. forest. 10 to ignite fires. Local me-
More global funding and been set in already defor- In Para state, where fires He added that Europe's dia said a group organized
political will in Brazil will be ested areas to clear land have swept many areas, dependence on imported the action over WhatsApp
needed once the fires are for farming. resident Moacir Cordeiro proteins, including soya, for to show support for Bolson-
extinguished, said John But Bolsonaro initially ques- said he was worried about animal feed is "a very bad aro's efforts to loosen envi-
Robinson, chief conserva- tioned whether activist their impact on nature and choice" and that he wants ronmental regulations.q