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Indigenous practices reshape wildfire strategy in Brazil's Cerrado

Illustration accompanying article: Indigenous practices reshape wildfire strategy in Brazil's Cerrado
  • The Xerente Indigenous people, living in Brazil's Cerrado savanna, are conducting controlled burns coordinated with federal environmental officials to prevent large-scale wildfires before the peak dry months of August and September.
  • The practice represents a reversal from decades of prejudice, with Indigenous leaders now collaborating with government agencies rather than facing exclusion from fire management decisions.
  • This year's El Niño phenomenon is expected to prolong drought and push regional temperatures higher, increasing wildfire danger across the biome.
 3 MIN READ

Trump administration moves to rescind Roadless Rule protecting 58 million acres of national forests

Illustration accompanying article: Trump administration moves to rescind Roadless Rule protecting 58 million
  • Agriculture Secretary Brooke L Rollins is working to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, which bars road construction and timber harvests on 58 million acres of national forests, according to former National Park Service Director Charles F Sams III.
  • The rule was adopted with broad bipartisan support after nearly 2 million public comments, Sams wrote in an opinion piece published June 5 in The Guardian.
  • Sams said eliminating the rule would threaten wildlife habitat for grizzlies, wolves, and salmon and jeopardize drinking water for 180 million Americans who rely on forested watersheds.
  • The administration has fired hundreds of park superintendents, rangers, biologists, and other staff from the National Park Service since Sams left office in 2025, he wrote.
 3 MIN READ
Illustration accompanying article: Iowa water pollution threatens health and summer recreation