Human activity in the world's largest tropical forest – the amazon – threatens the existence of Brazil's indigenous tribes. Regardless of the government's numerous property rights to protect the legitimacy of the tribes' ownership, poorly regulated logging seems to be eroding their natural habitats. In August 2019, Reuters reported that deforestation in the Amazon surged by 67% in the first seven months of the year, threatening the livelihoods of the 18,000 plus Mura that live in the rainforest. One of the issues at hand is homologation, a designation of some parcels of land not to be deforested without the locals' consent. However, many operators are reported to ignore treaties. What's more, researchers from Columbia University and the University of California, San Diego, noted that the government had a hand in the neglect. Technically, homologation, which has the potential to reduce deforestation by up to 3% a year, had been delayed intentionally (Chemnick, 2020). The blame on the government is also cited by Brazilian environmentalists, who cite the right-wing politicians for environmental blackmail.
If unregulated deforestation doesn't stop, half of the rainforest species face extinction in the next century (Carrington, 2015). Likewise, the native tribes of the Amazon are likely to face an increased risk of calamities, such as fires and unfavorable climate. For instance, Symonds (2019) reported that the incidence of fires was on a steep rise. In 2019 alone, there were 40,341 incidences, a 35% increase from that in 2010. The Green Matters movement reported that 45% of the fires directly affected the ancient tribes, fearing that some human deaths went unreported. The frequent infernos threaten to destroy the people's culture and history, given the strong reliance on the forest. Also, the people's reserves have been reportedly burned down to make way for agribusiness. As a result, the Amazon biodiversity is greatly disrupted.
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References
Carrington, D. (2015, November 15). “Half of tree species in the Amazon at risk of extinction, say scientists.” The Guardian. Retrieved https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/nov/20/half-tree-species-amazon-risk-extinction-study
Chemnick, J. (2020, August 11). “Amazon Deforestation Falls Where Land Is under Indigenous Control.” Scientific American. Retrieved https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/amazon-deforestation-falls-where-land-is-under-indigenous-control/
Green Matters. (2020, August). “The Amazon Fires Are Destroying Indigenous People's Homes — We Interviewed an Amazon Watch Director to Learn More .” Retrieved https://www.greenmatters.com/p/amazon-rainforest-fires-indigenous-tribes
Spring, J. (2019, August 23). “Brazil's indigenous people swear to fight for Amazon 'to last drop of blood.' Reuters. Retrieved https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-environment-wildfires-tribe-idUSKCN1VD1WO
Symonds, A. (2019, August 23). “Amazon Rainforest Fires: Here’s What’s Really Happening.” The New York Times. Retrieved https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/23/world/americas/amazon-fire-brazil-bolsonaro.html
