Amazon: Drop in inspections doubled emissions – 08/23/2023 – Environment

Significant drops in environmental inspection in the first two years of the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government, that is, 2019 and 2020, were centrally responsible for an explosion in greenhouse gas emissions in the Amazon.

Even without severe drought conditions, which potentiate wildfires, emissions in those two years were as high as those seen during the extreme El Niño recorded in 2015 and 2016 —which led to some of the highest degrees of CO2 growth._two atmospheric ever seen.

These conclusions are part of research published in the journal Nature, one of the world’s leading scientific journals, this Tuesday (23).

The Bolsonaro government was marked by speeches by the president himself and by members of his government who relativized the importance of monitoring environmental crimes and the seriousness of forest destruction.

The scientists who authored the study, including researchers from Inpe (National Institute for Space Research), compared the emissions recorded in 2019 and 2020 with the average for the period 2010-2018.

According to the researchers, although since 2018 deforestation has increased by 80%, “as a result of the reduction in public policies, we have observed a 50% reduction in fines”.

“We estimate that emissions have doubled in the years 2019 and 2020, compared to the period 2010-2018, as a consequence of these changes, and, in 2020, also due to climate stress”, says the article, whose main author is researcher Luciana Gatti, from INPE.

Looking at the years individually and always in comparison to the base period (2010-2018), in 2019 there was an 89% increase in carbon emissions. In 2020, growth was 122%.

The scenario of growth in emissions in 2019 is explained, according to the authors, by an increase of 82% in deforestation and 14% in the area burned in the Amazon. As precipitation and temperature remained within the expected variability, climatic conditions do not explain the sharp jump.

In 2020, the explosion in emissions was related to a 77% increase in deforestation and a 42% increase in the area burned, but also with a 12% reduction in annual precipitation —which occurred predominantly in the rainy season, from January to March, where a temperature increase of 0.6°C was also seen.

Less precipitation and higher temperatures lead to stressful conditions for the forest and trees, affecting the balance between photosynthesis (when CO is captured_two) and respiration (when CO is released_two) and, consequently, the scenario of carbon dioxide emissions.

“Regardless of whether it is the result of enhanced respiration, decomposition or fire associated with deforestation and degradation, our carbon flux results show that the Amazon is emitting more carbon, amplifying the consequences for global climate change”, highlight the scientists.

Clearing forests decreases evapotranspiration and rainfall, increases temperatures and increases vulnerability to fire. “Global and regional warming are synergistic and mutually reinforcing,” the authors point out.

The study recalls that the Amazon was an important agent for carbon sequestration in the recent past, but that this potential has been diminished especially because of tree mortality, which is a result of deforestation and climate change.

In about half a century, humans have devastated approximately 18% of the Amazon, 14% of which has been converted to agriculture, especially pasture.

How the study was done

To calculate greenhouse gas emissions, the researchers flew over four areas of the Amazon rainforest, at different altitudes, to collect samples.

From 2010 to 2020, 742 vertical air profiles were taken over the forest. Samples were collected about twice a month in each area, between 12:00 and 13:00 (local time). The gas samples were then analyzed at Inpe.

In addition to looking at greenhouse gases, the scientists surveyed the fines applied by inspection bodies. “The increase in deforestation rates along with higher emissions coincides with the decline of federal agencies responsible for enforcement in the region, especially after 2018”, say the authors, who also highlight that the number of assessments and judgments that resulted in fines payments reached the lowest level of the last decade.

Regarding the average deforestation recorded in the period 2010-2018, the years 2019 and 2020 saw increases of 82% and 77%, respectively, in forest destruction.

The average number of fines in the Amazon from 2010 to 2018 was 4,734 for crimes against flora, most of which relate to deforestation.

In 2019, assessments dropped to 3,331 and, in 2020, to 2,193, which represents almost half of the base period number. The drop in the number of fines paid until the following year saw an even more drastic decline, with a 74% dip in 2019 and 89% in 2020.

The research authors cite that the sense of impunity influenced deforestation after 2012 and accelerated it after 2018.

Among the actions that previously helped to curb deforestation, the researchers cite the combination of public and private policies, such as the expansion of protected areas —a measure constantly attacked by Bolsonaro—, the implementation of Deter —almost real-time monitoring of forest clearing —, and the PPCDam (Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon) —a program that was interrupted by Bolsonaro and recently resumed under the Lula (PT) government.