Climate Change Fuels Record Wildfires Globally

Climate change has driven record-breaking outbreaks of fire in Africa, Asia, and other regions this year. According to data compiled by World Weather Attribution (WWA), a research group studying the role of global warming in extreme weather events, fires from January to April have already caused unprecedented levels of damage, burning more than 150 million hectares of land—20% more than the previous record.

The researchers warn that temperature records could be broken this year, leading to widespread drought and fires. The impact of human-induced climate change is compounded by an especially strong “El Nino” effect, which is expected to start in May according to the World Meteorological Organization. This weather pattern could cause droughts in Australia, Indonesia, and parts of southern Asia, as well as flooding in other regions.

In Africa, as many as 85 million hectares of land have burned so far this year, a 23% increase from the previous record. The unusually high fire activity is driven by rapid shifts from extremely wet to extremely dry conditions. High rainfall produced more grass during the previous growing season, creating an abundance of fuel for drought- and heat-induced savannah fires.

Asian fires have burned as much as 44 million hectares of land so far this year, nearly 40% more than the previous record year of 2014. Countries like India, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and China have been among the worst hit. Scientists warn that wildfire risks could worsen later this year, with El Nino increasing the likelihood of severe heat and drought in Australia, Canada, the United States, and the Amazon rainforest.

Dr. Friederike Otto, a climate scientist at Imperial College London and co-founder of World Weather Attribution, warned that if there is a strong El Nino later this year, there is a serious risk that the combined effect of climate change and El Nino will result in unprecedented weather extremes. This dire warning comes as scientists have begun to track the development of a 'Super El Niño' phase.

The Paris Agreement aims to limit global temperature increases to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, with efforts to restrict it to 1.5°C. The more ambitious goal of restricting global warming to 1.5°C may be more important than ever, as previous research claims that 25% of the world could see a significant increase in drier conditions.