In Brazil, the Pantanal, the largest wetland on the planet, located in the center-west of the country and bordering Bolivia and Paraguay, is plagued by fires even before the start of the dry season. The outbreak record for the month of June having already been shattered, this extreme climatic event threatens this ecoregion with exceptional biodiversity which serves as a sanctuary in the south of the Amazon.
Since the start of 2024, more than 2,600 fire outbreaks have been identified in the Pantanal by the Brazilian Institute for Space Research, an increase of 1,818% compared to the same period last year. A figure much higher than 2020, the worst year on record, when nearly 40% of this region was ravaged by flames.
The dry season usually begins in the second half of the year. In 2020, a peak was reached in September, with 8,106 outbreaks, the most devastating month since Inpe began compiling this data in 1998. “ Everything suggests that we are facing another extreme climatic event, which makes us fear for the future of the biome in the coming months, when the drought will have reached its peak. “, told AFP Claudio Angelo, member of the Climate Observatory NGO collective.
One of the densest ecosystems on the planet
Less known than the Amazon forest, because it is not very accessible and rarely visited, this immense area of flooded meadows and savannahs nevertheless constitutes one of the densest ecosystems on the planet, with an exceptional concentration of aquatic plants and animals. wild.
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