Last month was the worst July for wildfires on record, scientists say

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Last month was the world’s worst July for wildfires since at least 2003, when satellite recordings began, scientists said, as swathes of North America, Siberia, Africa and southern Europe continue to burn.

Driven by extreme heat and prolonged drought, the blazing forests and grasslands released 343 megatons of carbon, about a fifth more than the previous global peak in July, which was set in 2014.

“It clearly stands out,” said Mark Parrington, senior scientist in the EU’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, which estimates carbon emissions. “The world total for July of this year is the highest since our records began in 2003.”

The unprecedented midsummer blight is the latest in a string of unwelcome recent records that underscore the destructive impacts of man-made global warming.

More than half of the carbon came from two regions – North America and Siberia – which experienced exceptionally hot and dry weather. In western Canada and the United States, forest fires followed prolonged and intense heat waves. In Siberia, much of the taiga of the Republic of Sakha was engulfed by flames and clouds of toxic smoke that drifted to the North Pole.

The global conflagration is spreading to the eastern and central Mediterranean, where many countries face an unusually violent start to the fire season.

Last week, the heat intensity of the fires in Turkey was four times higher than the previous daily national record. So far this year, 128,000 hectares (316,000 acres) have burned – eight times the average, according to the European Forest Fire Information System.

The same data set shows that charred areas in Italy have grown from almost zero in mid-June to almost 80,000 hectares, four times the 2008-20 average. In Cyprus, the increase is multiplied by eight; in Greece, double. Spain, France, Albania and North Macedonia are also higher than normal.

Across the region, at least eight people have died, hundreds have been taken to hospital and thousands of residents have had to be evacuated, including from popular resorts and nature reserves. A map of the active fires showed much of the region on fire. Italy, which is suffering the second worst fire season on record, is among the worst affected countries, especially in the south. The National Fire Service said it had carried out more than 800 operations, including 250 in Sicily and more than 100 in Puglia and Calabria. The central government has requested support from other countries through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

In Puglia, the forest of Difesa Grande in Gravina burned for more than four days, charring 200 hectares. In the resort town of Pescara, tourists, residents and nuns had to be evacuated when the flames of the Pineta Dannunziana nature reserve approached hotels, houses and a convent by the sea.

On the Greek island of Rhodes, fires threatened the Butterfly Valley at Psinthos and forced the evacuation of three nearby campsites. Authorities mobilized three Beriev-200 planes, six helicopters and more than 100 firefighters to regain control, according to local media.

As the hot weather continues, the dangers escalate. Almost all of southern Europe is covered by “very extreme” or “extreme” fire hazard warnings. Much of the region is also threatened by drought.

The number of large fires in Europe continues to rise and vulnerable areas are expanding, according to the EU’s Disaster Risk Management Unit. “The area affected by the fires is spreading across Europe, no longer limited to Mediterranean countries,” said JesÃºs San-Miguel-Ayanz, a scientist at the unit. Highlighting this trend, Finland also saw a sharp increase in forest fires this summer.

In many parts of the world, the fire season has not yet reached its peak. This is particularly true in South America and Africa, which contribute a much larger share of associated carbon emissions than Europe.

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