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Elected representatives from French Guiana and the Minister of Overseas are calling this Sunday for the establishment of an international fund against forest fires and reforestation while hundreds of new fire starts have occurred in the Amazon rainforest. These fires are also at the center of a verbal battle between Jair Bolsonaro, the Brazilian president and Emmanuel Macron, his French counterpart. France, which thanks to Guyana is also an Amazonian country and where the tropical forest is not yet very damaged.
With 8 million hectares, the Guyanese forest alone accounts for one-third of all French forests.
In its heart, the Amazonian park of Guyana, gigantic preserved area adjacent to the Brazilian border and the park of Tumucumaque. The two sets alone make up the largest rainforest protected area in the world.
This is one of the reasons why the Guyanese forest is still very well preserved. There are some seasonal fires, but these are mainly concentrated on the coast and are mainly brush fires.
► Also read: Amazonia: how do we extinguish big fires?
In the same way, there is little deforestation. It is found mainly in the north, on the coastal strip where the majority of the population is located. That said, the heart of the forest is not unscathed. Some river banks are completely mired by the activity of illegal gold miners despite the efforts of the state to fight against this practice.
A practice that also causes a great contamination of the ecosystem with methyl mercury, even when it is legally regulated.
The State itself has not always taken care of this nature. For example, there was the construction of the Petit-Saut dam on the Sinnamary. Its inauguration in 1994 resulted in the flooding of 360 km² of primary forest.
► Webdoc to see: Guyana: for all the gold of Maripasoula