10 things you need to know today: August 23, 2019

World leaders and Bolsanaro clash over fires in Brazil's Amazon, Bernie Sanders unveils a $16.3 trillion plan to address climate change, and more

Brazil has seen a record number of fires in 2019.
(Image credit: Corpo de Bombeiros de Mato Grosso via AP)

1. Environmentalists say fires in Brazil's Amazon were started by humans

Environmental groups and researchers say the dozens of fires destroying large sections of the Amazon were almost all set by humans, as cattle ranchers and loggers try to take over the land. The Amazon is a humid rainforest, and it is difficult, even during dry spells, for it to catch on fire, Christian Poirier of the nonprofit group Amazon Watch told CNN. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro promised during his campaign that he would open the Amazon up to business, and he has since slashed the environmental enforcement agency's budget, which environmentalists said had encouraged ranchers and loggers to burn down land. French President Emmanuel Macron called for focusing on the fires at this weekend's G-7 summit, calling the record rate of Amazon fires a global crisis. The Amazon forest produces 20 percent of Earth's oxygen. Bolsonaro warned other nations to stop "interfering with our sovereignty."

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.