Amazon sinks while our breath sinks

(Benjamin Lizardo, Unsplash)

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Devansh singh , medical student(M.D.) of Northern State Medical University, Arkhangelsk,Russian Federation. He is affiliated to the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

Amazon which produces 20% of world’s oxygen is on fire and environmentalists  are worried about it , why? The rainforest which was used to fix carbon is now emitting at much faster pace ,After 20^th August Sao Paulo incidence in context with air pollution, it has caught attention of environmental activists and global media. There have been more than 80,000 incidents of fires so far this year throughout brazil, nearly 80% percent increase compared to2018 ,but never have been so devastating as this one.

Deforestation , slash and burn practices in amazon for developing  agricultural infrastructure is a major root cause for the outbreak , all due to the policy enacted by Bolsonaro, since his 2018 winning.The livelistock business of meat and flesh  continue to raise questions for the environmentalists that should we still consume meat/flesh  inspite of the ongoing loss of our valuable resources!

Ecological balance between flora and fauna is already facing challenge and in these dreadful time of climate change and fires , 1/10 of amazon species is facing risk of extinction

Its believed due to the climate change associated with Fires , Air borne and water borne disease are likely to affect millions of people worldwide , due to disruptance in rain cycle during monsoons causing floods like situations in near future ,The incidence of Asthama , Emphysema,COPD(Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) is likely to be increased as per the epidemiologic studies  for now .Not only this Heat waves , Strokes would be more common in upcoming years if this trend continue to grow .

Dengue and Malaria still going to affect million of people in Latin America continent due to disruptance in food chain on micro level  .Due to heavy deforestation and fires, there’s already loss of medicinal value plants in amazon which were known to cure cancer and several life threatening diseases ,Allergic symptoms can persist still after week’s and month’s of fire . Pollen grains allergy could also interfere with immunologic responses of body causing acute rashes and respiratory disorders.

Steps are being taken by government agencies worldwide to contribute resources to put off the fire which could be detrimental for both humans and nature, these include recent financial offering by USA , Canada, EU

Sustainable Development and Climate Change can’t go hand in hand , this is what future leaders and policy makers should realize and help in making earth a better place for generations which are yet to come.

About the author

Devansh singh , medical student(M.D.) of Northern State Medical University,Arkhangelsk,Russian Federation. Proficient in spoken Russian ,English ,Hindi, German . Volunteer at Russian Red Cross.