This vulnerability is particularly precarious along the forest’s edges. Deforestation is driven largely by ranchers and farmers clear-cutting to make way for their crops and animals. This leaves fragmented forest edges exposed to the dry open air, which desiccates plants that would normally enjoy the humidity of a thick canopy. Then people set fire to what they’ve clear-cut, leading to out-of-control blazes. If plants stressed by drought are dropping leaves, they’re piling up yet more fuel for these fires. At the same time, the air is drier and hotter—the perfect conditions for blazes to spread. “You’re undermining the ecological firebreak,” says Brando, “because you’re increasing the likelihood that what is on the ground is going to burn.”
