Illegal loggers in the Amazon rainforest are taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic as the rate of deforestation has doubled, researchers have warned.
Trees are being cut down at twice the rate of last year with almost 2,000 square miles of the Amazon being cleared in the first three months of 2020.
Loggers are said to be taking advantage of the coronavirus crisis as world governments turn a blind eye while they try to manage the pandemic.
It is feared debris from the deforestation likely to be burned next month could spark even bigger fires than last year for Brazil.
More than 3,500 square miles of the Amazon went up in smoke during 40,000 fires caused by slash and burn loggers in 2019.
And the smoke caused from the fires could also prove deadly for people dealing with Covid-19.
Amazonian studies researcher Claudia Azevedo-Ramos, from the Federal University of Para, said: “What was ?illegally cleared in the rainy season will be burned in the dry season to clear the land.
“There is a high ?probability of ?experiencing fires more serious than those we faced in 2019.”
Para state covers an area bigger than Spain, Portugal and France but has just 10 government environmental inspectors.
Authorities have already recorded a hike in 240 percent in deforestation in Para state alone from January to March.
Azvedo-Ramos added loggers are “intensifying illegal activities” amid the pandemic.
She said: “All these elements contribute to an increase in violence in the countryside.”
Tasso Azevedo, the coordinator of MapBiomas Alert, a partnership that provides deforestation alerts, said the coronavirus outbreak had meant the Brazilian government had cut back on protection for the Amazon.
The country has more than 43,000 cases of coronavirus and 2,768 deaths – the highest confirmed figures in South America.
The number of fires in the Amazon rose by 30 percent last year compared to 2018, according to research by space agency INPE.
Smoke last year caused major issues for people with breathing difficulties.
And with COVID-19 impacting victim’s lungs, Azevedo said fires combined with the pandemic could be a “disaster”.
He said: “Every effort to stop the fire issue will be fundamental.”
The expert warned the Amazon cities of Porto Velho, Rio Branco and Cuiaba could all be badly affected.
Azevedo called on authorities to ban the use of fire for clearing agricultural land until the pandemic is over.
Experts have also reported an increase in the number of crawler tractors being used and sold in 2020.
Azevedo-Ramos said the tank-like diggers are only used for construction or deforestation.
She added conservationists are at a “disadvantage in this war” as Brazilian authorities fail to protect the Amazon.
Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has pushed for development on indigenous lands, including in the rainforest, as he passed a bill in February that would open forest preserves for mines and farms.
WWF-UK chief forest adviser Dr. James Gordon told the Mirror: “The figures are deeply concerning.
“In the eight months to March this year an area the size of Norfolk has gone, nearly twice as much as last year. And this before the dry season gets underway and the fires begin.”
It comes as the global coronavirus figures surged past 2.5million cases as the global death toll nears 200,000.