After a fateful 2024 with a historic record of fires in 17 years in the region, the inhabitants of the Brazilian Amazon make their voices heard.
The region’s inhabitants helplessly endured the onslaught of fire, with over 140,000 hotspots, according to government figures. “We lived through unsustainable weeks,” the inhabitants claim.
The demand of the Amazon inhabitants: “Unsustainable”
“We couldn’t go outside because we couldn’t see anything. The medical center was overwhelmed with patients with respiratory problems,” said 51-year-old professor Zairo Gomes, one of the social leaders in Breves, one of the most affected cities, to AFP.
The air quality meter at the federal university in the city recorded peaks of 480 micrograms per cubic meter of harmful fine particles (PM2.5). This far exceeds the maximum limit of 15 within a 24-hour period set by the WHO.
Breves is a poverty-stricken city with 107,000 inhabitants, whose main activity revolves around the port connecting Marajó with Belém. In the midst of the crisis, unemployment was rising, as part of the population also depends on the cultivation of açaà fruit, a staple in Pará’s diet, severely affected by the fire.
“Right to breathe”
The wave of fires sparked an unprecedented popular mobilization in the region. “We achieved something very important: citizens began to talk about the environment, climate change, and criminal fires. We stopped suffering passively,” stated Gomes.
Thus was born the collective “Breves calls for help, for the right to breathe”, which meets periodically to increase pressure on authorities and prevent the fire from wreaking havoc when the dry season starts in July.
“We want more resources for local firefighters,” they demand. The fire control services are overwhelmed. “And punishments for those responsible,” adds Maria Leao, a 50-year-old midwife and activist in the movement.
Most affected areas
Pará, whose capital Belém will host the COP30 of the UN in November, was the most affected state, with over 56,000 hotspots.
According to scientists, global warming is fundamental for this uncontrolled expansion of fire outbreaks. It makes vegetation drier and more prone to burning.
But they are usually caused by people trying to clear land for pasture or agriculture, despite the prohibitions in place during the dry season. However, they often go unpunished.
“We lack resources to fight the fire and arrest those responsible,” admitted Lieutenant Colonel Luciano Morais to the same agency at the Breves military police headquarters.
This year, “we only made two arrests” because it’s “very difficult to prove” who is behind the fires, often set at night, he adds.
At those hours, the forces “don’t want to enter the forest. And no one wants to talk,” out of fear or ignorance, he admits.
Record fires and the COP30 call in Brazil: the challenges
This situation occurs as Brazil already breathes the air of the 30th United Nations Conference on Climate Change, the COP30, to be held from November 10 to 21, 2025 in Belém, Pará, in the heart of the Amazon.
Brazil, home to one of the world’s largest tropical rainforests, plays a crucial role in mitigating the effects of climate change.
The COP30 will provide a platform for the country to showcase its efforts and commitments to environmental conservation and sustainable development. It will also highlight the importance of protecting the Amazon rainforest to maintain the planet’s balance.
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