Causes and consequences of Amazon fires and deforestation

By Jake Spring and Gloria Dickie (Reuters) - Brazil vowed last year to halt deforestation by 2030, yet the number of fires burning in the country's Amazon rainforest hit a 15-year high in June. Burning season began last month and the rate of forest clearing remains high. Things could worsen this month, as Brazil's fires traditionally peak in August and September. Here are some factors driving destruction of the world's largest rainforest. WHAT CAUSES THE FIRES? Unlike wildfires in Europe or the United States, fires do not occur naturally in the humid, tropical Amazon rainforest. Instead, farme...