Edinho Batista, coordinator of the Indigenous Council of Roraima, warned of the serious problems generated by the strong drought in the State
Roraima, the northernmost state in Brazil, broke a historic record for hot spots in February, with 2057 records. In the same month, the Rio Branco, its main source of drinking water, reached a negative level of -0,15m.
While non-indigenous people continue their routine in the capital Boa Vista - covered in smoke since mid-February - the Yanomami, Macuxi, Wapichana and people of other ethnicities see their homes and farms being destroyed by fires and, in four municipalities, indigenous communities have willingness to drink water that looks like mud.
For Civil Defense, the situation should last for around another 60 days, when winter is expected to begin in the state. During the next two months, the density of smoke is expected to increase, as well as the number of hot spots and fires, which in the Fire Department's assessment are caused in 100% of cases by human action.
“The certainty we have is that Roraima is burning, Roraima is on fire”, says Edinho Batista, coordinator of the Indigenous Council of Roraima, about the situation in the State, which is facing a severe drought intensified by the El Niño phenomenon, according to a Civil Defense report.
“We know that 90% of the population depends on water from the Rio Branco and we know that these people need to look at this as a consequence of the impacts of soy, mining and large enterprises. This has affected us all. We need to wake up, because if there continues to be a lack of water, smoke and fires, it’s not just the indigenous people who will die, everyone will die”, pondered Batista.
According to monitoring by the Roraima Water and Sewage Company (CAER), the Rio Branco began February with a level of 0,20m and at 15pm on the 15th it reached a negative level for the first time in the year. At the end of the month, the level was -0,15m.
When Edinho was interviewed on February 27, he reported that around 50 indigenous people living in communities were without drinking water because 50 artesian wells had already dried up. However, he warned that until the publication of this report, the number would increase. For these people to have access to water they have to walk 5km and even indigenous schools were left without supplies.
“We don’t want to anger people, but to raise awareness about the quality of life that not only exists in the material world, but also in the spiritual world. It is necessary to understand that water, plants, animals and people are important and life cannot be placed below the market. Capitalism influences people to be content with what they receive and not with what they have, and this will remain the case for the future”, reflected the CIR coordinator.
In four municipalities, there are indigenous communities drinking untreated water that can be compared to mud, according to the Executive Director of Civil Protection and Defense, Colonel Cleudiomar Ferreira. He states that there is an effort by city halls to distribute water, but there is no guarantee that there is adequate treatment, only that it is less harmful than dirty water from small streams.
“In the municipalities of Amajari, Pacaraima, Uiramutã and Normandia, indigenous communities are drinking mud, untreated stream water and because they are unaware of the seriousness of this, they have been doing this for a long time and during the drought this gets worse”, declared Cleudiomar.
The fires and water shortages affect several regions such as Raposa Serra do Sol, Serra da Lua and São Marcos. In addition to having also reached the Yanomami Indigenous Land, where there are reports of children and elderly people harmed by the smoke, as well as houses and farms destroyed by fires and lack of drinking water.
Routine in the smoke
Accountant Márcia Iully leaves her house for work, on a 9,6km route, and says she has the impression that Boa Vista is covered in fog. If it weren't for the symptoms of rapid fatigue and difficulty breathing, she might have been fooled by the smoke.
As she works in a closed room with air conditioning, Márcia almost forgets about the intense heat, smoke and soot for a few hours, but as soon as she walks through the door to leave work, she is reminded of the real situation in Boa Vista.
The first night she noticed the excess smoke, on February 20, she thought her house had burned down. “I got home from work, got out of the car and thought: 'my house caught fire'. I ran out and walked around the land to try to understand where the fire was coming from, until I realized it wasn't my house. Then I found out that there were some fires and that there are fires in the state,” she reported.
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All 51 neighborhoods in the capital of Roraima have been filled with smoke, soot and the smell of burning for more than a week. Boa Vista is also the 9th municipality with the most hot spots in all of Brazil this year. Another eight cities in the state are part of the top 10, according to monitoring by the Queimadas Program of the National Institute for Space Research (INPE).
Since 2024 began, Roraima has already recorded 2661 hot spots, leading the national ranking with almost twice as much as Mato Grosso do Sul, which occupies second place with 1710 hot spots. Of this year's total outbreaks in Roraima, 2057 were in February alone, reaching a historic record since Inpe monitoring began in 1998. The highest number for the month belonged to 2007, when there were 1.347 records.
“The difference between the heat source and the fire is that the focus is the moment that the satellite passes by and identifies the high temperature, it could just be something that passed by or a flame that touched and went out immediately, but we can say that 90% is fire”, explains Colonel Cleudiomar.
Still according to Cleudiomar, all fires in the State are the result of human actions – whether with or without intention. He exemplifies with trucks that release sparks through the exhaust (involuntary) and cleaning of fields and land (voluntary), the latter being the one that represents the largest number of cases.
“There is no spontaneous fire, it is very difficult. The cause of what we are experiencing is 100% human action. Arson by people who deliberately set fires and flee the scene is also under investigation, but the most common are the burning of fields by farmers and to a lesser extent in indigenous communities,” he states.
To deal with the situation, the government of Roraima declared an emergency situation on February 24th in nine of the State's 14 municipalities following a recommendation from the Civil Defense in a technical opinion that states that Roraima is facing water shortages, damage to agriculture and livestock, forest fires and health problems as negative impacts of drought. What characterizes a level II disaster situation.
Despite the high number of hot spots, Boa Vista was not included on the state government's emergency list. The municipalities in a declared emergency situation, which now have exemption from bidding for purchases and contracting related to the state's climate situation, are:
- Amajari;
- Alto Alegre;
- Sing;
- Caracaraí;
- Iracema;
- Mucajaí;
- Pacaraima;
- Normandy;
- Uiramutã.
According to Civil Defense, the drought is linked to El Niño, a phenomenon associated with the warming of the waters of the Pacific Ocean. According to Defense, a long strip of warm waters could be observed in the Equatorial Pacific Ocean from June 2023.
Defense also says that the effects were intensified from September “culminating in the configuration of a strong drought, which has triggered a series of adverse repercussions for both communities and ecosystems”.
According to the National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet), the south of Roraima may experience rainfall of up to 50mm accompanied by lightning, gusts of wind and thunderstorms from February 26th to March 04th. With the rains in the Amazon, the Uraricoera River benefited and Civil Defense hopes that part of this water will raise the level of the Rio Branco.
Path of smoke
It is from the Northeast to the Southwest where the winds blow predominantly in Roraima. In this way, what burns in Amajari and north of Alto Alegre sends smoke into the Yanomami Indigenous Land.
The fires in Mucajaí, a city also covered in smoke according to Civil Defense, have consequences for the Rio Negro channel, including the Demini region, which is the home of the shaman and leader Davi Kopenawa in the Yanomami Indigenous Land.
Boa Vista is covered mainly by smoke produced in the capital itself, but it also receives it from surrounding municipalities such as Cantá, Bonfim and Normandia – the latter having a very weak influence.
“There’s nothing to do, just wait. The smoke persists for up to three or four days after the fire department fights the fires. The incidence of smoke will increase until winter begins”, said Colonel Cleudiomar adding that winter should start in around 60 days.
Fire destroys houses and farms in Yanomami Land
Vital forest areas of the Yanomami Indigenous Land have been hit by fires that are destroying community homes and indigenous farms. O Monitoring system from the Hutukara Yanomami Association (HAY) received two reports from the Missão Catrimani and Apiaú regions in February.
Residents of Apiaú reported that the fire started in an external region of the Yanomami Indigenous Land, in places where there are farms for raising cattle. Upon entering indigenous territory, the fire reached forest areas vital to the communities' economy.
In the Missão Catrimani region, residents report that the community house in Manopi and Bacabal was destroyed after the burning of fields, which began on February 19, got out of control. Hammocks and other personal objects were also destroyed after leaders tried unsuccessfully to put out the fire. The leaders also report that almost all 22 communities in the region have their fields burned.
In both regions, there were complaints of respiratory problems caused by smoke, especially in children and the elderly. The severe drought in Roraima is also noticed by the Yanomami, who report a lack of access to drinking water following the lowering of the level of the Apiaú River.
In the Waikas region, where the Ye'kwana people live, a cocoa field, which would be used in the production of this year's Yanomami chocolate, was also hit and destroyed by a fire.
To control the situation and support the communities, Hutukara asked in a letter sent to the National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples (Funai), the Special Secretariat for Indigenous Health (Sesai), the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) and to the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) who:
- - Fire brigades are called urgently;
- - That the Special Sanitary District for Yanomami and Ye'kwana Indigenous Health (DSEI-YY) recover the water supply systems of the Serrinha, Hatyanai and Natureza communities in Apiaú;
- - Planning workshops on good fire management practices for communities;
- - That DSEI-YY redoubles nutritional surveillance and prevention and treatment of respiratory diseases.
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Help the indigenous communities of Roraima
Houses were also destroyed by fires that hit the forest of the São Marcos Indigenous Land, in Pacaraima. In a video recorded by residents and released by the Indigenous Council of Roraima, a family leaves their residence while being warned to only save their own documents.
“Today, in Normandia and Pacaraima, we have a lot of communities that are being affected by the fire. We leave a guideline for the general population: before burning any type of fire, be it in fields or household trash, or even if you are going to throw a cigarette on the side of the road, be aware that you should not do this during this period. , as we know that it is quite dry and you could be contributing to more fires”, advised the field coordinator of the Community Brigades, Jabson Nagelo Macuxi.
To support affected communities, CIR mobilizes efforts and asks for donations that will be directed to helping families harmed by the fires. Find out how to donate HERE.
Through the Native Seed Production and Ecological Restoration project in Roraima, the Instituto Socioambiental (ISA) supports indigenous communities in the Serra da Lua Region in combating forest fires and drought with donations of food, fuel and tools (backpack pumps, terraces, gloves, protective glasses, leggings, etc.).
With three community brigades managed by the CIR, the Institute has supported since 2019 with consumable materials, equipment, local support and uniforms. The work involves 36 brigades from 8 indigenous lands in Roraima. They are formed by the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) in partnership with CIR.
ISA also supports organizations in the Yanomami Indigenous Land with monitoring hot spots and qualifying territorial information on the impacts of fires on communities, in addition to making donations of food and various materials (hammocks, clothes, pans, agricultural tools, etc.) for affected families in the Médio Catrimani and Apiaú regions.