Environmental Ministry Mobilised Against Increase in Fires
A Gazeta de Cuiabá
September 22, 2000
A sudden increase in the number of fires in Mato Grosso has mobilised the Ministry of the Environment to take action: the Ministry has sent IBAMA's (the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources) only three helicopters to try to prevent the blaze from spreading. Between Tuesday and Wednesday there was an increase of 542 fires, mostly occurring in pastureland. The use of fire in agriculture is currently illegal as IBAMA has placed a ban on the use of fire until the 30th of September. The current fire problems being faced have forced IBAMA to consider the possibility of extending the ban until a later date. Overall, the country has experienced fewer fires this year than in 1999, but Mato Grosso is still the leader by far in terms of the sheer number of fires.