Smoke from several wildfires in Canada has reached Norway this week, thousands of miles away from the fires, Norway’s Institute for Climate and Environmental Research (NILU) learned Friday.
“Very low” concentrations of smoke particles have been measured since Monday, particularly at the Birkens station in the south of the country, the researcher said. NILU Nicholas Evangelio. Actions will vary depending on fire intensity, wind direction and rainfall.
“We don’t see an extreme peak or a significant increase (…) so we don’t see any environmental problem (in Norway) or serious health risk,” he said.
>> Check out the Norwegian Institute for Climate and Environmental Research’s model of smoke movement:
Red Alert in America
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued air quality warnings on Wednesday due to smoke from wildfires in the US and Canada.
These warnings concern most of the northeastern United States, from Chicago in the north to Atlanta in the south. Air quality in this area is “primarily affected by Canadian fires, although other local emissions and weather may play a role,” the EPA said.
Several major US cities such as New York and Washington were hit with red alerts on Wednesday, which means the general public can also feel the effects on their health, which is even worse for vulnerable people.
An event celebrating LGBT+ (“Pride Month”) Pride Month, which was scheduled to take place outside the White House on Thursday evening, has been postponed, as has a professional baseball game.
Climate change
Climate change increases fire risk and their severity. Increase in temperature, increase in heat waves and rainfall in places are ideal combination for their growth.
Although no study has yet been conducted to assess the link between the current fires in Quebec and climate change, “the conditions we are seeing in Canada are in line with the warnings of climate experts,” UN Secretary-General Stephane Dujarric said Thursday. General.
Citing both smoke from the fires and a rise in flooding events across the US, White House spokesman Andrew Bates slammed the Republican opposition, which he said “follows conspiracy theories that deny the existence and nature of climate change”.
Exceptional situation
Quebec is already experiencing a historic season, with nearly 800,000 hectares affected by fires, according to officials. There have been twice as many fires since January compared to the average for this time in the last 10 years.
On Thursday, the French-speaking province still registered more than 150 active fires, including nearly 90 out of control. New international reinforcements are expected in the coming hours and days.
According to Stephen Garron of the Society for the Protection of Forests Against Fire, the situation is alarming in many regions: “We’re only at the beginning of this fire season”.
The risks of new fire outbreaks are even more significant: except for the western part of Quebec, they are considered “severe” by authorities. They explain that these flames are more intense and spread faster, making it more difficult for firefighters to stop them.
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