Reuters: The destruction of the Amazon forest surged over the last five months of 2007, the Brazilian government said, only months after hailing progress in curbing deforestation. Deforestation in the Amazon, known as "the lungs of the world" for its ability to consume greenhouse gases and produce oxygen – shot up from 243 square kilometres in August to 948 sq km in December. That is four times as much as in the same period of 2004, the government said. It did not provide …