Once again this year, official word on the extent of rain forest destruction, this time for data since 1994, is running late, with the Government pledging to release them the day before the Kyoto conference begins. But the thick clouds of black smoke that have shut schools and airports near the forests' edges have left little doubt among Brazilians about the trend. Weather satellites show the number of fires in the Amazon increased 11 percent in June to October burning season like this one that burned in the north-central Brazil. Weather satellites show the number of fires increased 11 percent in the June to October burning season. While most fires are not located in primary rain forest, some environmentalists believe that the increased burning corresponds to an increase in deforestation and makes the rain forests more vulnerable to accidental fires.
Brazilian officials say they are making progress.
They are moving to crack down on deforestation by revoking 63 percent of logging licenses, many of which were being used to log in excess of legal limits, and are overhauling government policies that traditionally rewarded ranching or planting in the rain forest as an improvement on the land. But environmentalists fear that the Amazon may face new threats ahead. Before the Kyoto meeting, Brazilian officials said their country's fires and rain forest destruction paled next to the environmental damage caused by United States industry, which puts out 22 percent of the world's fossil fuel emissions. Brazil says it puts out less than 3 percent of the fossil fuel emissions. But environmentalists argue that the problem is not one of money, but of political will.