The devastating 2020 Pantanal Fires

“It is known that wildfires behave unpredictably – this is fundamental – but it is my experience that humans in the presence of wildfire are also likely to behave in aberrant and unpredictable ways”

— Michael Leunig, political author, poet, philosopher, artist and cartoonist

In 2020, the world faced unprecedented challenges that we never expected: lockdowns, economic crises, and wildfires devastating the planet’s forests. Most people heard about the Amazon fires, but the Pantanal fires, that were four times larger than the Amazon’s biggest blazes, flew mostly under the radar. NASA estimated that the 2020 fires burned 44,000 square kilometers of the Pantanal, around 30% of the entire Pantanal forest.

Wildfires are a naturally occurring phenomenon at certain times of the year. Small scale fires can be triggered by factors such as lightning strikes and are quickly put out by the rain. They serve as a ‘reset’ for the forest, reducing the density of the tree canopy so that other species can compete and thrive, with some species even relying on fires to survive. This is ecological succession.

That being said, the 2019 fire season from July to October was unusually active, with larger and more frequent wildfires than normal. According to Greenpeace, Brazil is facing its biggest drought for 47 years, which explains the shortage of rainfall during the 2020 wet season (December to April). 2019’s fires were not fully extinguished, and the wetlands didn’t have a chance to recharge: river levels were extremely low, with too much dry biomass in the forest, providing the perfect fuel. The high amount of organic material in the soil made it highly flammable, burning underground and reigniting flames that had already been extinguished. By the time July 2020 came, the fires surged and ravaged through the forests, with outbreaks 205% higher than in 2019.

This increase wasn’t a freak nature event – the fires were caused by a combination of illegal deforestation, climatic factors, and poor environmental regulations. Small, controlled fires are commonly set in the forest – by farmers clearing trees to make space for agriculture and livestock pasture, by fishermen lighting campfires, and by local people burning trash. However, due to the unusually dry conditions, these spread rapidly through the forest, quickly becoming uncontrolled wildfires.

These deforestation practices are not legal – but the president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, and his administration have been weakening environmental agencies and regulations since he came into power. Bolsonaro claims that the “deceitful media is hyping up the wildfires”, stating that Brazil is “one of the countries that most protects the environment”. In reality, he wants to open the rainforest for commercial activity and increase agriculture, and believes environmental protections are holding back Brazil’s economic development. As such, the agencies protecting the forest have had their budget and staff cut so they do not have the resources to fight the fires, and illegal burning is actually being encouraged.

There are always two sides to every story: while Bolsonaro is not punishing those deforesting and burning the trees, it’s important to remember that these people have no other means of income. Ranching in the forest is their livelihood, and they are the victims, not the villains of the system. Ultimately, it is the administration that is responsible for this tragedy.

Of course, these widespread fires have unprecedented effects on the forest and the wildlife within. The Pantanal is one of the most diverse biomes in the world, and with the fires affecting almost a third of the forest, also spreading to savannahs, shrublands, and conservation facilities, some endemic species of plants and animal were lost forever, and thousands more were negatively impacted.

Wildlife sanctuaries around the region were inundated with animals suffering from burn damage, including jaguars. It’s difficult for jaguars to detect fires burning underground so they often get caught in an abrupt blaze, and it’s not hard to imagine that smaller or slower animals such as snakes and tapirs, or grounddwelling animals can get caught with no means to escape. Wildcat conservation organization Panthera estimates that more than 200 jaguars suffered death, injury, or displacement in 2020.

Wildlife is also affected by fire indirectly, through the destruction of habitat and important resources such as food and water. Those impacted include tapirs, caimans, anacondas, peccaries and of course jaguars. 92% of macaw territories were harmed by the flames, making the birds more vulnerable to predation and poaching, and many young animals were found injured and alone after their parents were caught in the blaze.

Even before the fires started, jaguars were suffering due to large amounts of deforestation occurring in the Pantanal. This additional loss of habitat put even more pressure on their numbers, destroying the vegetation they would use to shelter and hunt in, reducing the size of their territories, and fragmenting the forest causing further isolation of populations.

The fires do not just affect the plants and animals of the region: as the largest continental wetland in the world, the Pantanal provides a wide array of ecosystem services such as water production, carbon capture and flood control, that are worth billions of dollars every year. As the trees burn, these services are quickly lost. Additionally, the burning forests release all the carbon dioxide they have sequestered straight back into the atmosphere, further contributing to climate change.

The flames also spread to indigenous territories and private lands in the basin, destroying people’s home and livelihoods and causing severe economic losses for local people. As the smoke took over the atmosphere, their health was impacted through smoke inhalation leading to respiratory problems.

It’s no secret that extreme weather events are going to become more common: climate change is a positive feedback loop that is spinning out of control. So far in 2021, 7,000 square kilometers of the Pantanal have already burned.

On a lighter note, there is a marked difference in the efforts to fight the fire this year. Government agencies, NGOs, institutes and universities are working together to protect the Pantanal and educate local communities about the risks, including teaching them how to deal with future fire events. As part of this education, sustainable farming practices are being promoted in an attempt to tackle the root of the problem and reduce the number of fires being set.

One of the agencies working towards this goal is Chalana Esperança, a non-profit consisting of four female biologists that decided they could not stand by and watch their forests disappear. When you purchase any print on this website, 100% of your input goes directly to Chalana Esperança.

That said, in order to quench the wildfires for good, Brazil’s government must invest in better fire-fighting equipment and strengthen the environmental protections around this area. Without top-down regulation, the cycle will continue.