CLIMATE CRISIS: WILDFIRES
Peru is burning while authorities look away
Manuel Pulgar Vidal, former Minister of Environment, warns that the scale and intensity of these fires are unprecedented. / ANDINA/Difusión
By Alek Buttermann September 17, 2024
Wildfires continue to ravage 22 of Peru’s 24 regions, claiming at least 15 lives and destroying over 3,000 hectares of land. Despite the scale of destruction, Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzén has downplayed the severity of the situation, stating that declaring a state of emergency is "not being evaluated." This dismissive attitude has drawn widespread criticism, especially as conditions worsen and communities struggle with limited resources.
The origins of the fires are attributed to human activities, particularly the traditional but harmful practice of slash-and-burn agriculture. Adrianzén has urged locals to cease these practices, but his appeal comes as little comfort to those already affected. Many see the government’s response as inadequate, hindered by limited aircraft and unfavourable weather conditions. Adrianzén himself acknowledged the limitations, noting that smoke, wind and clouds have prevented aerial firefighting efforts in key regions like Amazonas.
The situation has prompted calls for a more urgent response. The Defensoría del Pueblo has advocated for a state of emergency, arguing that the government's slow reaction has exacerbated the crisis. Experts like Manuel Pulgar Vidal, former Minister of Environment, warn that the scale and intensity of these fires are unprecedented. He criticises not only the government’s lack of preparedness but also the “perverse incentives” created by policies like the anti-forestry law, which encourages illegal deforestation under the guise of legalising land titles for export.
Climate change is compounding the problem. Prolonged droughts and strong winds have turned vegetation into highly flammable material, accelerating the spread of fires. The National Forestry and Wildlife Service (SERFOR) has warned that the country’s current conditions are perfect for wildfires to spiral out of control.
Peru's firefighting efforts are further strained by poor planning and a lack of preventative measures. While the government touts its ability to handle large fires, smaller, more remote blazes are being neglected, leading to more deaths and destruction. As the country burns, the government’s inaction speaks louder than its words.
Manuel Pulgar Vidal, former Minister of Environment, warns that the scale and intensity of these fires are unprecedented. / ANDINA/Difusión
By Alek Buttermann September 17, 2024
Wildfires continue to ravage 22 of Peru’s 24 regions, claiming at least 15 lives and destroying over 3,000 hectares of land. Despite the scale of destruction, Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzén has downplayed the severity of the situation, stating that declaring a state of emergency is "not being evaluated." This dismissive attitude has drawn widespread criticism, especially as conditions worsen and communities struggle with limited resources.
The origins of the fires are attributed to human activities, particularly the traditional but harmful practice of slash-and-burn agriculture. Adrianzén has urged locals to cease these practices, but his appeal comes as little comfort to those already affected. Many see the government’s response as inadequate, hindered by limited aircraft and unfavourable weather conditions. Adrianzén himself acknowledged the limitations, noting that smoke, wind and clouds have prevented aerial firefighting efforts in key regions like Amazonas.
The situation has prompted calls for a more urgent response. The Defensoría del Pueblo has advocated for a state of emergency, arguing that the government's slow reaction has exacerbated the crisis. Experts like Manuel Pulgar Vidal, former Minister of Environment, warn that the scale and intensity of these fires are unprecedented. He criticises not only the government’s lack of preparedness but also the “perverse incentives” created by policies like the anti-forestry law, which encourages illegal deforestation under the guise of legalising land titles for export.
Climate change is compounding the problem. Prolonged droughts and strong winds have turned vegetation into highly flammable material, accelerating the spread of fires. The National Forestry and Wildlife Service (SERFOR) has warned that the country’s current conditions are perfect for wildfires to spiral out of control.
Peru's firefighting efforts are further strained by poor planning and a lack of preventative measures. While the government touts its ability to handle large fires, smaller, more remote blazes are being neglected, leading to more deaths and destruction. As the country burns, the government’s inaction speaks louder than its words.
Brasília (AFP) – Brazilian firefighters on Monday battled flames blazing through a nature reserve in the capital district of Brasilia, where an area the size of 3,000 football fields has already been destroyed.
Issued on: 17/09/2024 -
Brasilia is battling its worst fires of the year so far
© EVARISTO SA / AFP
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called an emergency meeting of his cabinet as Brazil's worst drought in seven decades has fueled fires in the Amazon rainforest and the Pantanal wetlands, choking major cities including Rio de Janeiro with smoke.
The capital Brasilia was the latest to be hit, battling its worst fire of the year as residents used buckets of water to dampen their threatened homes.
Three separate fires broke out over the weekend in the Brasilia National Park, officials said, razing about 1,200 hectares by Monday as dozens of firefighters with planes and helicopters battled to contain the onslaught.
"The flames began to come with great speed and at a height of about six meters (19 feet), and the community started to mobilize," nurse Simone Costa, 51, told AFP as she inspected fire damage with her husband and daughter near their home in Brasilia.
"We grabbed buckets of water to control the fire so that it did not move even closer," she said.
Authorities warned that things were likely to get worse in ultra-dry conditions after 140 days without rain in Brasilia.
The number of fires in Brazil so far this month (57,312) has already exceeded the total for September 2023 in its entirety, according to satellite data from the INPE research institute.
Several Brazilian dams are at historically low levels, and cities like Rio are affected by water restrictions.
Though fuelled by drought, which experts say is made more likely by climate change, authorities say most of the fires were set illegally.
© 2024 AFP
Brasilia wildfire rages across national park, threatening protected environments
Wildfires engulfed the conservation area of Brasilia National Park on Monday and smothered the capital in smoke as the country grapples with a historic drought. The fire was reported to be human-caused, according to the government agency that manages the park, and appears to have started near the edge of a farm.
Issued on: 17/09/2024 -
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called an emergency meeting of his cabinet as Brazil's worst drought in seven decades has fueled fires in the Amazon rainforest and the Pantanal wetlands, choking major cities including Rio de Janeiro with smoke.
The capital Brasilia was the latest to be hit, battling its worst fire of the year as residents used buckets of water to dampen their threatened homes.
Three separate fires broke out over the weekend in the Brasilia National Park, officials said, razing about 1,200 hectares by Monday as dozens of firefighters with planes and helicopters battled to contain the onslaught.
"The flames began to come with great speed and at a height of about six meters (19 feet), and the community started to mobilize," nurse Simone Costa, 51, told AFP as she inspected fire damage with her husband and daughter near their home in Brasilia.
"We grabbed buckets of water to control the fire so that it did not move even closer," she said.
Authorities warned that things were likely to get worse in ultra-dry conditions after 140 days without rain in Brasilia.
The number of fires in Brazil so far this month (57,312) has already exceeded the total for September 2023 in its entirety, according to satellite data from the INPE research institute.
Several Brazilian dams are at historically low levels, and cities like Rio are affected by water restrictions.
Though fuelled by drought, which experts say is made more likely by climate change, authorities say most of the fires were set illegally.
© 2024 AFP
Brasilia wildfire rages across national park, threatening protected environments
Wildfires engulfed the conservation area of Brasilia National Park on Monday and smothered the capital in smoke as the country grapples with a historic drought. The fire was reported to be human-caused, according to the government agency that manages the park, and appears to have started near the edge of a farm.
Issued on: 17/09/2024 -
A resident near Brasilia National Park tries to contain the forest fire that is raging in the park so that it doesn't reach their homes in Brasilia, Brazil, on September 15, 2024. © Evaristo Sa, AFP
By: NEWS WIRES
Firefighters on Monday battled flames spreading through a national park in Brazil that is enveloping Brasilia in smoke. It's the latest wildfire in the country, which is experiencing an historic drought.
More than 90 firefighters were trying to extinguish blazes that have already burned through 700 hectares (1,700 acres) of the conservation area of Brasilia National Park. Two aircraft from the Federal District’s military firefighting unit and another two from the nearby Chapada dos Veadeiros national park are being mobilized, according to a statement from ICMBio, the government agency that manages the park.
The head of the agency, Mauro Pires, told newspaper Folha de S.Paulo that the fire was human-caused and appears to have started near the edge of a farm.
Smoke from the fire smothered the capital, Brasilia, on Monday, and columns of black smoke were visible from several points in the city.
Brazil has been enveloped in smoke in recent weeks, as fires rage in the Amazon rainforest, the Cerrado savanna and the Pantanal wetlands. Those uncontrolled, human-made wildfires have ravaged protected areas and spread smoke over a vast expanse, causing air quality to plummet.
The country is also enduring its worst drought since nationwide measurements began more than seven decades ago, with 59% of the country affected — an area roughly half the size of the US Major Amazon basin rivers are registering historic lows.
A task force of the Federal District’s public security agency is working with the Federal Police to investigate possible criminal actions in the fire in the Brasilia National Park, the agency said in a statement, adding that around 1,500 agents from the district's government are working to combat fires in the region.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Instagram that the Federal Police have opened 52 investigations “against those responsible for the crimes against our country,” adding that he would be meeting with Environment Minister Marina Silva to “discuss further actions to deal with this climate emergency.” On Sunday, he did a flyover of the park that's spread across three of the Federal District's administrative regions, including Brasilia, and one municipality in Goias state.
Supreme Court Justice Flávio Dino issued a ruling on Sunday authorizing the federal government to direct extra funds toward combating forest fires and hiring firefighters.
Scientists say that climate change — primarily caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal — makes extreme weather more likely, favoring conditions for events such as wildfires and floods.
(AP)
Portugal wracked by blazes at tail end of Europe’s wildfire season
Three firefighters died battling the blazes, Portugal’s prime minister said, adding the country was going through “difficult days.”
By Bryan Pietsch
September 17, 2024
As Europe approaches the end of a wildfire season that has been milder than those of recent years — yet still devastating in certain areas — firefighters in Portugal are battling blazes that have wreaked havoc across the country and left at least three firefighters dead.
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro cleared his schedule Monday and Tuesday to deal with what his office called an “extremely difficult weather situation.”
Three firefighters died while fighting blazes in Tábua in central Portugal, the country’s Ministry of Internal Administration said in a statement Tuesday. Montenegro said the firefighters were “heroes who gave their lives defending Portugal and the Portuguese people. The greatest tribute we can pay them is to continue fighting, as they did.”
André Fernandes, commander of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Agency, said at a news conference that 125 fires were recorded between Monday evening and Tuesday morning, Portuguese newspaper Expresso reported. Some of the fires were “beyond extinguishing capacity,” he said, adding that the authorities were focusing on “preserving human life and property.”
The fires were concentrated in the northern half of the country, according to European Union data, which showed that more than 160,000 acres have burned in the past day.
Portugal was going through “difficult days” due to the fires, Montenegro wrote on X. He thanked France, Greece, Italy and Spain for their help in battling the fires. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said eight planes had been mobilized via the E.U. Civil Protection Mechanism.
The European Commission said in a statement in May that it was readying a series of “protective measures” in preparation for the wildfire season, including deploying more than 500 firefighters across “strategic locations” in the European Union.
While there have been more wildfires in Europe this year than average, the amount of area burned and the carbon dioxide emitted by them have been lower than average, suggesting the fires have not been as devastating as usual.
Still, even aside from the destruction in Portugal this week, Europe has not gone through the summer unscathed. Last month, a wildfire with flames reaching as high as 80 feet scorched the Athens area in Greece, forcing evacuations in the height of tourism season. A bout of wildfires in Greece last summer were the largest ever recorded in the European Union, burning more than 230,000 acres.
Human-caused climate change has worsened wildfire risks in Europe and around the world. Scientists warn that a warming world and changing weather patterns have led to longer fire seasons and conditions that are ripe for fires to burn larger areas more intensely.
“The fire risk is expected to further increase due to climate change,” according to the E.U. civil protection agency. “The season will be increasingly characterized by massive fires that cost lives and burn areas that take longer to fully recover.”
Even as swaths of Portugal burned, central Europe suffered the aftermath of floods brought on by an extreme storm named Boris over the weekend, which left at least 12 people dead. Climate change probably intensified the storm, The Washington Post reported.
Three firefighters died battling the blazes, Portugal’s prime minister said, adding the country was going through “difficult days.”
By Bryan Pietsch
September 17, 2024
As Europe approaches the end of a wildfire season that has been milder than those of recent years — yet still devastating in certain areas — firefighters in Portugal are battling blazes that have wreaked havoc across the country and left at least three firefighters dead.
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro cleared his schedule Monday and Tuesday to deal with what his office called an “extremely difficult weather situation.”
Three firefighters died while fighting blazes in Tábua in central Portugal, the country’s Ministry of Internal Administration said in a statement Tuesday. Montenegro said the firefighters were “heroes who gave their lives defending Portugal and the Portuguese people. The greatest tribute we can pay them is to continue fighting, as they did.”
André Fernandes, commander of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Agency, said at a news conference that 125 fires were recorded between Monday evening and Tuesday morning, Portuguese newspaper Expresso reported. Some of the fires were “beyond extinguishing capacity,” he said, adding that the authorities were focusing on “preserving human life and property.”
The fires were concentrated in the northern half of the country, according to European Union data, which showed that more than 160,000 acres have burned in the past day.
Portugal was going through “difficult days” due to the fires, Montenegro wrote on X. He thanked France, Greece, Italy and Spain for their help in battling the fires. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said eight planes had been mobilized via the E.U. Civil Protection Mechanism.
The European Commission said in a statement in May that it was readying a series of “protective measures” in preparation for the wildfire season, including deploying more than 500 firefighters across “strategic locations” in the European Union.
While there have been more wildfires in Europe this year than average, the amount of area burned and the carbon dioxide emitted by them have been lower than average, suggesting the fires have not been as devastating as usual.
Still, even aside from the destruction in Portugal this week, Europe has not gone through the summer unscathed. Last month, a wildfire with flames reaching as high as 80 feet scorched the Athens area in Greece, forcing evacuations in the height of tourism season. A bout of wildfires in Greece last summer were the largest ever recorded in the European Union, burning more than 230,000 acres.
Human-caused climate change has worsened wildfire risks in Europe and around the world. Scientists warn that a warming world and changing weather patterns have led to longer fire seasons and conditions that are ripe for fires to burn larger areas more intensely.
“The fire risk is expected to further increase due to climate change,” according to the E.U. civil protection agency. “The season will be increasingly characterized by massive fires that cost lives and burn areas that take longer to fully recover.”
Even as swaths of Portugal burned, central Europe suffered the aftermath of floods brought on by an extreme storm named Boris over the weekend, which left at least 12 people dead. Climate change probably intensified the storm, The Washington Post reported.
Greece Aids Portugal to Battle Deadly Wildfires
Greece has announced that it will assist Portugal in battling the deadly wildfires burning in central and northern regions of the country since last week.
Athens is sending two Canadair CL-415 firefighting aircraft to Portugal, which departed for their mission early Tuesday morning.
At least two people have been killed as Portugal is placed on alert from Saturday to Tuesday evening because of high temperatures and strong winds.
The string of blazes that broke out over the weekend in the northern Aveiro region has injured 12 firefighters, including two seriously, and forced about 70 residents to flee, according to the country’s civil protection authority.
“The situation is not out of control, but it is very complex. Today will be a difficult day, and so will tomorrow,” said national civil protection commander Andre Fernandes
Several houses caught ablaze in Albergaria-a-Velha, on Portugal’s west coast, after a fire started in the neighboring municipality of Sever do Vouga, a local authority source told Portuguese news agency Lusa
According to the town’s mayor, António Loureiro, one neighborhood has been evacuated and several others are expected to follow.
Four people have been injured, as authorities have cut off traffic to three major motorways including part of a main highway connecting the cities of Lisbon and Porto.
The municipality has issued a warning to the population to stay safe and canceled school classes on Monday.
All of mainland Portugal is currently on alert until Tuesday due to the risk of fire, as several fires remain active including in the areas of Sever do Vouga and Oliveira de Azeméis.
Over 500 firefighters are battling the largest of the blazes, near Oliveira de Azemeis, south of Porto, according to local media on Sunday.
EU civil protection mechanism for Portugal wildfires activated
The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced on Monday that Greece will provide assistance to Portugal in combating the wildfires that are raging across the country.
Earlier on Monday, Portugal had requested the activation of the EU civil protection mechanism.
“The EU stands with Portugal as it battles major wildfires. We are urgently mobilizing 8 firefighting planes via our Civil Protection Mechanism to help local first responders. I thank France, Greece, Italy and Spain for their rapid reaction. This is EU solidarity at its best,” stated von der Leyen in a post on X.
Under the Civil Protection Mechanism, the European Commission can provide assistance in the form of additional firefighters, water bombers and helicopters. It can also help by using satellite imagery from the Copernicus system — the Earth Observation component of the EU’s space program — to track fires on the ground.
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