Wildfire destroyed some 300,000 square kilometres in Brazil last year, equivalent to the surface area of Italy and 62% more than the four-decade average, the MapBiomas initiative reported on Tuesday.
MapBiomas is made up of universities, non-governmental organizations and tech companies that evaluate satellite images and other data.
According to the report, 156,000 square kilometres of the Amazon region were burnt, the largest area since records began in 1985. The fires were attributed largely to a severe drought in Brazil last year.
“Fire is not a natural element in the Amazon Forest’s ecological dynamics. The burnt surfaces are the result of human activity,” MapBiomas Amazon coordinator Felipe Martenexen said.
“The combination of easily flammable vegetation, low humidity and the use of fire has created perfect conditions for large-scale fire propagation,” he said.
Trees are often felled and the deforested areas then set alight to create grazing or land for growing soya. In extremely dry conditions, the fires tend to get out of control.
This has consequences for the global climate, as the Amazon is able to bind huge quantities of CO2.
According to MapBiomas, deforestation in Brazil declined last year by 32%. Plans have recently been devised to combat deforestation.
Brazil’s state governments have also increasingly implemented sanctions, such as fines imposed by the Ibama environmental authority.
Despite the decline, Brazil is a long way from the declared goal of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to achieve zero deforestation by 2030.