Let’s stop fiddling while Rome burns

Our house is burning. Literally.” These are the words of French President Emmanuel Macron but they apply to every person across Wales.

The Amazon rainforest produces 20% of our planet’s oxygen but there are currently around 9,000 active fires spreading across the world’s lungs.

So far this year Brazil has had more than 72,000 of them – an 84% increase for the same period in 2018.

And in Brazil’s worst-affected state, the Amazonas, the day with the peak number of fires is 700% higher than the average for the same day over the past 15 years.

But for a nation which prides itself on its rolling countryside, what drives home most is the sight of a sea of green being swallowed by the billowing smoke.

As the fires rage, pressure is now building on the world’s powers to take action at the G7 summit in Biarritz.

Already, Boris Johnson and Angela Merkel have backed Macron’s call to put the Amazon on the agenda, while both France and Ireland have said they will oppose a trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur because of Brazil’s environmental backpedalling.

Yesterday, a Downing Street spokesman added: “We are deeply saddened by the increase in fires in the Amazon rainforest. The impact of the tragic loss of these precious habitats will be felt around the world.”

Adding to a growing chorus, celebrities including the likes of Madonna and Lewis Hamilton have already shared their calls to action to social media with the hashtag #PrayForAmazonas.

And Green Party deputy leader Amelia Womack has taken to protesting outside the Brazilian Embassy to make her voice heard.

At a time of such division, however, a global plan rather than a viral hashtag is needed more than ever to save one of our most precious resources.

Last month’s Extinction Rebellion on the streets of Cardiff showed on a city-wide scale the impact the actions of individuals can have.

It’s something Greta Thunberg is also showing as she makes her way across the water to New York.

And when deforestation in Brazil is happening at a 278% higher rate last month compared to this time last year, we need leaders to show that that same action is possible on a wider scale.

Before it’s too late.