Fires take heavy toll as feud deepens
Respiratory problems rise but Bolsonaro still has backing of many residents
Lingering smoke in the Amazon is causing concern among Brazilians who say that respiratory problems — particularly among children and the elderly — have increased as fires in the region rage.
“The kids are affected the most. They’re coughing a lot,” said Elane Diaz, a nurse in the Rondonia state capital of Porto Velho, as she waited for a doctor’s appointment at one of the city’s hospitals with her 5-yearold-son Eduardo. “They have problems breathing. I’m concerned because it affects their health.”
The number of people treated for respiratory issues has increased sharply in recent days at the local Cosme e Damia Children’s hospital.
“This period has been very tough. The dry weather and the smoke causes many problems on children, such as pneumonia, coughing and secretion,” Daniel Pires, a pediatrician and the hospital’s adjunct-director told the newspaper.
Growing fears over the health impacts are emerging as the number of fires in Brazil surges, with more than 77,000 documented by the
country’s National Space Research Institute in the last year. About half of the fires occurred in the Amazon region, with most in the past month.
But as breathing-related ailments appear to be on the rise, attention to the issue has largely been overshadowed by growing acrimony between Brazil and European countries seeking to help fight Amazon fires and protect a region seen as vital to the health of the planet.
At a summit in France this week, G7 nations pledged to help fight the flames and protect the rainforest by offering US$20 million ($31.3m), in addition to a separate US$12m from Britain and US$11m from Canada.
But Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, a far-right climate sceptic who took office this year with a promise to boost development in Latin America’s biggest economy, questioned whether offers of international aid mask a plot to exploit the Amazon’s resources and weaken Brazilian growth. He said his French counterpart President Emmanuel Macron had called him a liar and would have to apologise before Brazil considers accepting rainforest aid.
In a video message, Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho offered an apology to France for Bolsonaro’s “hysteria”, saying the Brazilian Government had resorted to insults to dodge responsibility for the fires.
Meanwhile, within Brazil, a number of people said they supported Bolsonaro despite local and international criticism of his handling of the
crisis, exposing a divide that has split the country.
Grace Quale, a hospital laboratory technician who attended a service at an evangelical church, said critics “want to overthrow our President”, and that she didn’t see a link between Bolsonaro’s environmental policies and the number of people getting treatment for respiratory problems.
Mona Lisa Pereira, an agronomist, also said criticism of Brazil’s Government was skewed. “Germany had already been helping through NGOs and they couldn’t prevent this,” Pereira said.
“It seems like this is the fire of a lifetime. But it’s not. We have fires every year.”
Others said in an open letter that the Government’s discourse and measures are leading to a “collapse in federal environmental management and stimulate environmental crimes inside and outside the Amazon”.
More than 500 employees from the environmental regulator Ibama signed the letter and included a list of emergency measures they recommended, including more qualified management and employees, and a greater budget and increased autonomy.