Forest fires in Europe this year have burned the second largest area on record
Forest areas across Europe this summer have burned the second-largest area on record since records began, even though we are still in the middle of the season when wildfires usually break out, according to data from the EU Joint Research Centre.
In about 12 European countries have already experienced forest firesthis year forcing thousands of people to leave their homes and causing destruction to homes and businesses.
Countries, among which Italy, Spain and Francestill face a huge risk of forest fire.
Forest fires have burned a total of 6,007,310 square meters in EU countries this year, the figures show.
This is the second largest total since records began in 2006.
In 2017, 9,878,440 m2 were burned.
The area burned this year is more than double the total area of Luxembourg.
No other year in the database has burned so much in Europe in the period up to August.
The period when forest fires are usually recorded in Mediterranean extends from June to September.
Climate change exacerbates the problem by increasing the temperature and humidity, conditions that help the fire to spread faster, increase its duration and severity.
THE Victor Resco de Dios, professor at the university Lleida, Spainexplains that the large wildfires in early July in France and Portugal were “extremely unusual” and demonstrated that climate change is making the fire season start earlier and last longer.
The Center’s figures cover fires that exceed 300 square meters in area, so if smaller fires were included then the total number of burnt area would be higher.
Southern European countries such as Portugal and Greece record forest fires nearly every summer but high temperatures are taking the risk of serious fire further north with Germany, Slovenia and the Czech Republic among the affected countries this season.
RES-EMP
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