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Photos: The Burning Amazon Rainforest (25 photos)

For weeks now, forest fires have been burning across Brazil’s Amazon rainforest—generally a normal situation in the dry season, but the fires are much worse than normal this year. Brazil’s official numbers now tally more than 79,500 fires this year—more than half of those in the Amazon, making this the “most active fire year in that region since 2010.” The majority of these fires are intentional, set by farmers and ranchers to clear fields and open up land for grazing. The government of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who promised to relax environmental protections, faces growing criticism in Brazil and abroad as the Amazon burns. Gathered here, images from Brazil taken over the past few days.

A laborer stares at a fire that spread to the farm he work on next to a highway in Nova Santa Helena municipality in northern Mato Grosso State, in the Amazon basin in Brazil, on August 23, 2019. ( Joao Laet / AFP / Getty)
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2019/08/photos-burning-amazon-rainforest/596815/