Brazil’s Amazon and Pantanal wetland regions have experienced their worst wildfires in almost two decades, according to the EU’s climate change monitoring service.
Tens of thousands of fires rage around the country, around half of them in the Amazon rainforest, which is threatening the area’s vast stores of carbon and sending more of the damaging greenhouse gas into the atmosphere. About 2.4 million hectares of forests, fields and pastures in the Amazon burned between June and August.
In total, there were more than 95,000 hot spots in the Amazon biome this year to September 18, according to data from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (Inpe). Carbon emissions from the fires in the country’s rainforest and wetland areas have consistently been above average, breaking both national and regional records and impacting the air quality across much of South America.
The Amazon is one of the world’s most important carbon sinks, said Lucas Ferrante, a biologist and researcher at both Sao Paulo University and the Federal University of Amazonas. “Now, it is emitting carbon,” he said. “We are at a turning point.”
The phenomenon was first noted in 2021, with emissions amounting to a billion tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, making the forest a source of CO2, mainly due to fires.
Cumulative emissions so far this year reached around 183 megatonnes as of September 19, following a similar path as the previous record set in 2007. September has accounted for 65 megatonnes of the total alone, due to emissions from the Amazon region, notably the states of Amazonas and Mato Grosso do Sul, where most of the Pantanal wetlands are located and the annual cumulative total estimated carbon emissions are the highest in the 22 years.
Although fires are common during the country’s dry season, this year’s anomalies are a red flag for experts. “The timing of the fires and how long it is lasting is what is worrying us,” said Ritaumaria Pereira, executive director at Imazon, a nonprofit focused on research and projects in the Amazon region. “Things have gotten out of control, and the name for that is climate change.”
Bolivia has also been battling record wildfires, with carbon emissions there standing at 76 megatonnes, exceeding the previous annual high of 73 megatonnes of carbon set in 2010. September has accounted for 32 megatonnes alone. Experts say the fires have been fuelled by extremely high, long-term drought, and other climatological factors that have likely to have contributed to the greatly increased scale of the fire emissions, smoke, and air quality impacts.
“The smoke transport has had an impact far beyond the vicinity of where the fires have been burning, even reaching across the Atlantic,” said Mark Parrington, senior Scientist at the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.
“The scale of the smoke transport and air quality impacts are an indicator of the scale and intensity of the fires. It is imperative to keep monitoring these wildfires and their emissions to track their impact on air quality and the atmosphere.”
Climatologists have warned for decades that events like this year’s would come to pass. Droughts in the last two decades have become much more severe and much more common. The last year – the hottest on record globally – brought Brazil’s extremes to a new level.
“This was always something that we know would happen,” said Michael Coe, senior scientist and tropics programme director at Massachusetts-based research organisation the Woodwell Climate Research Centre. “But there’s a huge difference between knowing that it will happen and seeing it happen.”
When rainforests burn, what replaces them can’t replace the carbon storage and evaporative cooling that benefits the global climate. The Amazon is a critical part of the global climate system. Without it, modelling suggests that the Earth could warm another degree Celsius on top of the already dangerous 2.7ºC or so that’s already in store. Fossil-fuel burning, deforestation and other causes have lifted the global average temperature by about 1.3C since before industrialization.
Around 40 per cent of the fire spots in Brazil are in areas of primary, or undisturbed, vegetation. The rest are mostly in deforested areas. Deforestation is lower than it has been in years past, an indication of how primed the land is to burn due to hot, dry conditions.
Ibama says almost all of the fires have been caused by humans, whether deliberately or accidentally. Burning is common in Brazilian agriculture. Historically, Brazil encouraged it as a fast, cheap way to clear land and prepare soil for new planting. The government has banned the practice, although many farmers do not obey the rule.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva this week announced 514 million reais ($95 million) to fund emergency measures, including more investigations and hiring specialized firefighters.
Last year, at the start of his third term in office, he returned to the international stage promising to bolster protections for the Amazon, shield tribal lands from resource extraction and spark a green transition of Brazil’s economy. Deforestation went down and a project establishing guidelines for developing sustainable fuels was approved, marking progress toward a cleaner-energy future.
However, the crisis in the Amazon may pose a challenge when he heads to the UN General Assembly in New York on Saturday. “Lula is trying to convince the world that Brazil is a climate leader. But there’s some disconnect there in the actual actions on the ground,” said Manoela Machado, a post-doctoral researcher at Woodwell Climate Research Centre, who studies drivers of fire risk in the Amazon.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Zayed Sustainability Prize
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
EA%20Sports%20FC%2024
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Last 10 winners of African Footballer of the Year
2006: Didier Drogba (Chelsea and Ivory Coast)
2007: Frederic Kanoute (Sevilla and Mali)
2008: Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal and Togo)
2009: Didier Drogba (Chelsea and Ivory Coast)
2010: Samuel Eto’o (Inter Milan and Cameroon)
2011: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2012: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2013: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2014: Yaya Toure (Manchester City and Ivory Coast)
2015: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund and Gabon)
2016: Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City and Algeria)
The Way It Was: My Life with Frank Sinatra by Eliot Weisman and Jennifer Valoppi
Hachette Books
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The biog
Age: 32
Qualifications: Diploma in engineering from TSI Technical Institute, bachelor’s degree in accounting from Dubai’s Al Ghurair University, master’s degree in human resources from Abu Dhabi University, currently third years PHD in strategy of human resources.
Favourite mountain range: The Himalayas
Favourite experience: Two months trekking in Alaska
Spare
Profile
Company name: Spare
Started: March 2018
Co-founders: Dalal Alrayes and Saurabh Shah
Based: UAE
Sector: FinTech
Investment: Own savings. Going for first round of fund-raising in March 2019
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Canada
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RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP FIXTURES
September 30
South Africa v Australia
Argentina v New Zealand
October 7
South Africa v New Zealand
Argentina v Australia
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
RESULT
Manchester United 1 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Man United: Dunk (66' og)
Man of the Match: Shane Duffy (Brighton)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox
Price, base / as tested: Dh76,900 / Dh110,900
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged in-line four-cylinder
Gearbox: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 252hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: Torque: 352Nm @ 2,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.5L / 100km
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3EName%3A%20Tabby%3Cbr%3EFounded%3A%20August%202019%3B%20platform%20went%20live%20in%20February%202020%3Cbr%3EFounder%2FCEO%3A%20Hosam%20Arab%2C%20co-founder%3A%20Daniil%20Barkalov%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Payments%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%2040-50%20employees%3Cbr%3EStage%3A%20Series%20A%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Arbor%20Ventures%2C%20Mubadala%20Capital%2C%20Wamda%20Capital%2C%20STV%2C%20Raed%20Ventures%2C%20Global%20Founders%20Capital%2C%20JIMCO%2C%20Global%20Ventures%2C%20Venture%20Souq%2C%20Outliers%20VC%2C%20MSA%20Capital%2C%20HOF%20and%20AB%20Accelerator.%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2019 GMC Yukon Denali
Price, base: Dh306,500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 621Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.9L / 100km
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Bullet%20Train
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
