Investigation States That One Pantanal Fire in Mato Grosso Was Intentional

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Mato Grosso government has released the investigation reports on five areas of the Pantanal region, in the south of the state, where forest fires are still raging. In a note, the government states that there is damage caused by intentional human action.

According to the Integrated Multiagency Operational Coordination Center (CIMAN-MT), in the Pantanal Sesc Natural Heritage Private Reserve (RPPN) – Barão de Melgaço region, the fire was caused with the purpose of burning the deforested vegetation “to create a cattle-grazing area”.

In another location, called Fazenda São José, the fire started because of the “burning of roots for the use of smoke to remove the honeycombs”, in an area where honey is commonly extracted from wild bees.

The investigation also detected accidental causes. In Fazenda Espírito Santo, an agricultural machine cleaning the area and gathering the harvested hay “caught fire and started the burning in the region.”

In the Transpantaneira Highway, the cause of the forest fire was an accident in which a vehicle caught fire and plunged from a ravine by a bridge on the road. On Helder Candia Highway, a high voltage cable broke and sparks caused the fire.

Mato Grosso Governor Mauro Mendes had promised to ascertain the reasons for the fires.

“The State Environmental Secretariat is equipped with sufficient technology to identify what is happening in the state of Mato Grosso every minute. We retrieve Planet System imagery and we can demonstrate when the fire started, where and at what point it started,” said Mendes after conducting an aerial survey of the site on August 18th.

According to Law 9.605/1998, it is a crime to “cause fire in woods or forests” with the penalty of “imprisonment, from two to four years, and a fine”.

Operation Pantanal

Since August 5th, the federal Ministry of Defense has extended Operation Pantanal, which was engaged in fighting fires between Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso. Teams and vehicles from the Armed Forces, the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio), the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), and the Fire Brigade are active in fighting the fire.

Last Thursday, 182 troops and 139 officers fought three fire outbreaks in Porto Jofre and Hotel Pantanal Mato Grosso, in the municipality of Poconé (MT). They also put out two fires in the localities of Fazenda Santa Maria and Fazenda Rio Novo, in Barão de Melgaço.

Approximately 1.7 million hectares may have been destroyed in Mato Grosso as a result of fires. In addition to human action, the dry vegetation and heat add to the potential for fire outbreaks in the state.

Source: Agência Brasil