Amazon fires: Historic EU-Mercosur trade deal under threat as Brazil rejects US$20m G7 aid

27 Aug 2019 --- As the Amazon rainforest continues to burn, organizations including the Rainforest Alliance are highlighting how the fires are non-natural and stem from human activity, including beef and soy production. This could have knock-on effects on sustainability efforts and ultimately jeopardize food security. Meanwhile, diplomatic tensions between Brazil and G7 countries are strained, as President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, rejects a US$20 million offer of funding to help fight the devastation. This follows French President Emmanuel Macron’s threat of blocking an EU trade deal with South American states, including Brazil, as a result of the fires.

Both France and Ireland have already threatened not to ratify the EU-Mercosur trade deal with South American nations unless Brazil steps up action to fight fires in the Amazon. Described as the EU’s biggest trade deal to date, the EU-Mercosur deal was agreed in principle earlier this year following 20 years of negotiations.

The trade deal includes food and beverages, as well as farm products from South America, and machinery, chemicals and pharmaceutical products from the EU.

Now it seems full ratification – which is needed before this historic trade deal would enter into force – is hanging in the balance because of the continuing Amazon fires and the subsequent political fallout.

Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister, announced that £10 million (US$12.2 million) in funding would be immediately available for the protection and restoration of the Amazon rainforest at yesterday’s G7 summit. “In a week where we have all watched, horrified, as the Amazon rainforest burns before our eyes, we cannot escape the reality of the damage we are inflicting on the natural world,” he said.

However, Brazil has rejected this gesture – along with the rest of the G7 funding. Onyx Lorenzoni, the Chief of Staff to Bolsonaro, says that the resources are more relevant to reforesting Europe, pointing towards rebuilding the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris.

Clearing land to make room for the beef industry is a major cause of the fires.A result of deforestation
The fires in the Amazon rainforest are man-made and occur every year. However, satellite data from the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research has shown an 88 and 68 percent increase in fires for June and July, respectively, compared to the same period in 2018. They are generally caused by farmers clearing land to make room for agriculture, as natural fires are rare due to the humidity of the region. Beef production is the major food industry sector driving this deforestation, although soy is increasingly becoming a factor.

Although deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon had been stabilized for a decade, rates are surging again due to various trade and social issues, following the election of the far-right Bolsonaro last year. “The fires in the Amazon are the result of complicated political, financial, and social factors,” says Henriette Walz, Deforestation Lead for the Rainforest Alliance. “We need continued collaborative effort from governments, companies, and consumers to send a message. We know the links between climate change, deforestation, and human welfare are there. We need to keep moving towards a more sustainable agriculture and land management system and reap the many benefits such a system would provide.”

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has also condemned the fires, noting that they are devastating but not surprising. “Extremely dry conditions and continual deforestation have led to an increase in fires in the region this year – up 78 percent compared to what we saw during the same period in 2018. These fires are destroying ecosystems, displacing wildlife, and jeopardizing the livelihoods of millions,” says Kerry Cesareo, Senior Vice President, Forests, WWF.

The Rainforest Alliance notes that man-made forest fires, as photographed by Mohsin Kazmi, are not exclusive to the Amazon, and are an issue threatening ecosystems from Indonesia to Guatemala and Mexico. The combination of saving forests and better agricultural practices could deliver up to 37 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions reductions required between now and 2030 to stabilize global warming below 2°C in a cost-effective way. This is vital as the UN highlights how food systems must undergo a significant change in order to safeguard future supplies.

Meanwhile, just 24 percent of high-impact food and agriculture companies are disclosing their effects on forests. Palm oil, soy and cattle are major drivers of deforestation and disclosure is a key step in reforming practices. Additionally, businesses are at risk of facing a backlash if they do not listen to calls from customers, investors and consumers for transparency and forest protection.

By Katherine Durrell