“Last year, fires killed people, destroyed homes and infrastructure, caused mass evacuations, threatened livelihoods and damaged vital ecosystems,” said Matthew Jones of the University of East Anglia and lead author of the study.
“These fires are becoming more frequent and intense with climate warming, and both society and the environment are suffering the consequences.”
The authors of the report concluded that climate change has made weather conditions favouring the fires more likely.
They found that human influence has increased by at least a factor of 20 the probability of weather conditions conducive to fires in the western Amazon.
If humanity continues to produce large amounts of greenhouse gas, major fires – like those that took place last year – will become more likely.
But nothing is set in stone.
“The risk can be minimised. It is not too late,” said Jones during a presentation of the report to media.
“A low-carbon future offers a lot of respite from the risks we face in the future.”
Over the past two decades as human activity has warmed the planet, the frequency and intensity of extreme wildfires has more than doubled worldwide, according to a study published in June in Nature Ecology & Evolution.
Source: CNA
