Outbreaks of fires in reed beds and grasslands were recorded in the last weeks of July on the islands of Paraná River in Entre Ríos, Argentina.
In turn, the Argentine Federal Justice ordered the province of Entre Ríos and the Municipality of Victoria to suspend any administrative authorization for the controlled burning of weeds in the area comprising the Paraná River Delta for 6 months.
Amid protests and roadblocks, since Saturday, new outbreaks of fire have been registered in the islands of Entre Ríos.
The smoke affected residents of towns and cities such as San Lorenzo, Rosario, Villa Constitución, Empalme, Theobald, Pavón, and Rueda.
Towards the middle of last June and before the 3,000 outbreaks of fire in these areas, the Ministry of Environment of the Nation declared an environmental emergency in the area and established the prohibition of all burning in the area for the next 180 days.
Among the threatened species in the Paraná, delta region is the endangered swamp deer, the mixed river forest that consists several species such as the creole willow, the river Alder, the cannelloni, the laurel among others, and typical of the islands of the upper portion of the delta in the vicinity of the cities of Diamante and Rosario.
The actions to control the igneous foci were in charge of the Ministry of Security of the Nation, which arranged two hydrant plans, to which is added a helicopter of the Argentine Naval Prefecture, and in the next few hours, another of the Federal Police.
Meanwhile, the National Parks Administration, which reports to the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, collaborated with the security forces in the fight against fire, with a special team of 28 brigade members equipped with vehicles, hand tools, and motor pumps, which belong to the parks closest to the affected area.
For his part, the National Deputy for the province of Santa Fe, Enrique Estévez, presented a draft "Wetlands Law" to guarantee resources and management tools to protect these ecosystems, which cover 21.5% of Argentine territory.
Many years ago the burning of grasslands became an environmental catastrophe.
The flora and fauna of the places are being killed and that is why they are fighting for a law, ”said the deputy in radio statements.
However, I have stressed that fire levels have never been seen before as in recent days.
Likewise, I have affirmed that similar projects were presented to the Senate of the Nation previously, obtained a half sanction, but were stopped in the Chamber of Deputies.
"The bill was worked collectively with environmental organizations, public universities, and specialists in the field," he said.
"The law establishes the realization of a national inventory of Wetlands that will be built in a participatory manner," he detailed and assured: "It will try to catalog the activities that can or cannot be done in these ecosystems."