The incidence and importance of fire in the Amazon have increased substantially during the past decade, but the effects of this disturbance force are still poorly understood. The forest fire dynamics in two regions of the eastern Amazon were studied. Accidental fires have affected nearly 50 percent of the remaining forests and have caused more deforestation than has intentional clearing in recent years. Forest fires create positive feedbacks in future fire susceptibility, fuel loading, and fire intensity. Unless current land use and fire use practices are changed, fire has the potential to transform large areas of tropical forest into scrub or savanna.
Forest fires in the Amazon: short-term individual benefits versus long-term societal costs
Forest fires in the Amazon: short-term individual benefits versus long-term societal costs
Fire is the least expensive and most broadly used method of clearing land and converting forest biomass into soil nutrients for pastures and crops in the tropics. Fire is also used to control weeds and to reinvigorate palatable pasture grasses. Even if beneficial for farmers over the short run, intensification of deforestation and burning impose long-term costs on individuals and society.