"SAO PAULO - Ricardo Galvao, the sacked head of Brazil’s space research agency, said on Saturday the trend of sharply rising deforestation was undeniable, a day after he was fired following a public spat with President Jair Bolsonaro over data published by the agency.

“There is not the slightest doubt,” he told Reuters when asked whether the data pointed to a trend of significantly increasing deforestation. “Our data is absolutely correct.”

The sacking of Galvao, a respected physicist and member of the Brazilian Academy of Science, sent shockwaves through the country’s scientific community."

Stephen Eisenhammer reports for Reuters August 3, 2019. [2]