Alert Note: Forest fires and humanitarian needs in Bolivia

Dansk International Bosætningsservice (DIB) has submitted an alert note due to forest fires in Bolivia.

A particularly destructive series of forest fires are destroying homes and livelihoods of people and animals alike in Bolivia and South America. According to official numbers as per September 11th, 3,872,498 hectares (nearly the size of Denmark) have been affected, of which 59.4% correspond to Santa Cruz Department and 37.7% to Beni Department, while other estimates suggest that more than 5 million hectares affected. On September 19th, the Forest Monitoring System (SIMB) reported 16,769 heat sources, while the database from FAN estimates 33,759 as of September 23rd. According to the Vice Ministry of Civil Defence, on September 17th, 64 municipalities have been affected; 28 have been declared in disaster and 4 in emergency. Official numbers state that roughly 250,000 people have been affected, losing their homes, subsistence farms, having to evacuate or by smoke-induced health issues. It is estimated that at least 10 million animals have died and 400 million trees have burned. El Niño brought record-breaking temperatures for the first four months of 2024, and according to Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología (SENAMHI) in Bolivia, the rain during these months could not overcome the drought from this El Niño. The dry conditions built over this period of time has made the wildfires in the lowlands of Bolivia intensify since around July, and the destructive effects of these have only increased since. On 8th of September, the Bolivian government - through the Ministry of Defence - declared national emergency, opening up for regional and international assistance to combat the fires, while on September 7th declaring sanitary alert - through the Ministry of Health - as the smoke from the fires is affecting people’s health in many areas. This specific Alert Note only includes information on Bolivia, but other Amazon basin countries such as Peru and Brazil are facing similar problems.