Climate change and human activities indicate an increase in the frequency and intensity of wildfires over the past two decades.
Global destructive wildfires contribute to global emissions
According to a report from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, global wildfires have emitted 33.9 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) between 2001 and 2022. This makes CO2 emissions from wildfires higher annually than emissions from fossil fuel combustion in Japan – the sixth largest source of CO2 emissions in the world. The increase in these emissions has been attributed to the rising frequency of “devastating wildfire incidents.”
The negative impacts of destructive wildfires
It is expected that the impacts of wildfires and other fire types will worsen globally in the coming decades. Wang Youhang, a meteorologist and professor at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, states that the report aligns with his work indicating “an increase of about 20% in the area burned globally by 2050 compared to the 2000s.” Wang adds that emissions from global wildfires are expected to double, highlighting the emergence of wildfires as a significant source of carbon emissions in the short term. Wang supports the report’s suggestion that carbon emissions from wildfires should be included in national climate plans and that a system for monitoring, reporting, and verifying these emissions should be established.
Proposed measures to address destructive wildfires
Given the significant emissions generated by wildfires, they have become a source of carbon dioxide emissions that “cannot be ignored,” according to researcher Shou Chong, a meteorologist at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Thus, countries must include carbon emissions from wildfires in their national climate plans and establish a system for monitoring, reporting, and verifying these emissions.
Source: Chinese Academy of Sciences
References
Zou, Y. et al. Atmos. Chem. Phys. 20, 995–1020 (2020).
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