Uncontrolled forest fires are currently raging on the west coast of the United States. At the same time, it is burning in more places in the world, for example in Siberia.
– Researchers have been saying this for many years – it is a sign of climate change, says Ekot’s climate correspondent Marie-Louise Kristola.
What is the reason for this?
This is what researchers have been saying for many years – it is a sign of climate change. The areas where it is normally hot and dry will become even more fiery as temperatures rise. After many years of warmer temperatures and reduced precipitation that makes both the land and the wood in the forest drier. We have seen this in California for several years, but also in northern Siberia, where it has burned a record amount this year, in the Amazon, in Australia and in several places in Europe. And that is a consequence of global warming as temperatures rise on Earth.
What damage do these many fires cause?
In areas where there are very many people, such as on the west coast of the United States, it is a matter of hundreds of thousands of people having to be evacuated and leaving houses and homes, but in the huge forests of Siberia where very few people live, there are instead the large carbon dioxide emissions caused by fires which is a major problem. Those emissions have also been record high this year.
What do politicians do?
There is a lot that can be done locally to reduce the risk of it starting to burn, such as tending the forests, clearing away dead trees, dry wood and rice that easily catch fire. Authorities can for periods also introduce a fire ban, and ban the use of certain forest machines, for example, which can form sparks. But in the larger perspective, it is of course about reducing emissions that drive climate change. And there, politicians are still doing far too little, according to climate scientists.
Source: ICELAND NEWS