Fires in the Mediterranean, North America and Siberia brought the highest annual carbon emissions measured from forest fire in the Northern Hemisphere during any summer.
Intense fires – including fires in hotspots across the Mediterranean, North America and Siberia – released more than 2.7 billion tonnes of carbon over summer, with July and August breaking monthly fire outputs records in each.
Over half of July’s emissions could have been caused by fires in North America and Siberia.
Europe had its hottest summer on record this year, and the Mediterranean also broke record temperatures, along with parts of the Arctic and Canada.
Man-made climate change, making extreme weather events more frequent and intense, and dry conditions and heatwave conditions in the Mediterranean turning the region into a hotspot for wildfires that cause extensive amounts of smoke poisoning has dominated the region this year.
Meanwhile, wildfires in the Arctic – a region that has warmed at more than double the pace of the rest of the planet since 2000 – released 66 million tonnes of CO2 between June and August, according to Kopernikus.
The Boreal fire season generally lasts from May to October, and activity culminates from July to August.
“While the local weather conditions play a role in the actual fire behavior, climate change is helping provide the ideal environments for wildfires,”Mark Parrington
“While the local weather conditions play a role in the actual fire behavior, climate change is helping provide the ideal environments for wildfires,” said Mark Parrington, Senior Scientist in ECMWF Copernicus Atmosphere – Environment Programme (CACG).”Climate change.
