SAO PAULO, May 24 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro signed a decree on Tuesday to step up fines for environmental crimes, according to the official government gazette, in a move to allow more aggressive protection of the Amazon rainforest.

The decree raises the potential value of fines for falsifying documents to cover up illegal logging, clarifies heavier consequences for repeat environmental offenders and aims to reduce the backlog of fines pending collection. (Reporting by Jake Spring; Editing by Tom Hogue)