Tuscany, a region renowned for its rolling hills and timeless beauty, faces increasing threats from wildfires, do to terrifyingly high temperatures. This part of Italy, celebrated for its rich history and bountiful vineyards, isn’t immune to the perils posed by climate change.
One big issue we have here in England is that many politicians and those in the media, do not take climate change as seriously as it needs to be. In the USA, Fox News gives free publicity to climate change deniers (including Donald Trump).
How much of climate change is caused by us? The short answer is all of it. Scientists’ best estimate is that roughly 100% of warming since the mid-20th Century is caused by human activity. The main producers of greenhouse gases are electricity generation and transport.
Current research finds that if humans weren’t around, the climate would actually be cooling slightly. To avoid the worst impacts, we need to stop burning fossil fuels and transition to renewable energy. Dr John Cook (climate scientist)
Meanwhile in Tuscany, nobody can afford to be a climate sceptic. The hot recent summers have been causing havoc with the local economy (rich due to olive oil and wine) with grapes ripening far earlier than they should, so having to be harvested are the wrong times.
Wildfires (and storms with winds of up to 150km an hour) have caused local deaths (and in one area, 300 pine trees blew down, affecting the very countryside that attracts tourists).
What Exactly Is a Heatwave?
A heatwave is simply prolonged hot weather, exceeding usual temperatures of that region. A typical heatwave lasts three days or more, with daily highs usually pushed to dangerous levels. Most are caused when high-pressure systems trap heat in an area, acting like a lid, to stop warm air from escaping. Climate change leads to rising greenhouse gas emissions, which makes heatwaves more frequent and intense, along with urban heat islands and ocean currents playing roles.
One GB News presenter recently said that the media and MPs were scaremongering people to be ‘frightened of summer’ predictions of at least 40 degrees. But BBC meteerologist Tomasz Schafermaker says this was air temperature (above 1 metre).
Not ground temperatures, which will have been higher (sometimes in excess of 50 C). This is the problem when we have MPs and media pundits deciding how serious climate change is, rather than listening to scientists.
Heatwaves not only upset regular weather patterns, but increased temperatures reduce rainfall, and this creates a feedback loop that leads to more heat and dryness. Heatwaves don’t directly cause wildfires, but create the perfect conditions (high temperatures, dry air and parched landscapes) for flames to ignite and spread.
Water also evaporates quickly, leading to dry plants, trees and soils. Dry vegetation then becomes flammable. A single spark (from humans, power lines or lightning) can set off a blaze.
Fires also spread faster in areas with low humidity, making them harder to control. Winds can also fan the flames and spread fires. LA and surrounding areas has low humidity, which is why they often have huge wildfires that are difficult to put out.
LA and Australia have recently had devastating wildfires. As has Greece, which suffered a huge wildfire during a scorching heat wave in 2021, with thousands of acres burned, and hundreds of fires forcing people to flee their homes.
How to Help Prevent Heatwaves
Obviously, preventing climate change is the main way, to help reduce temperatures. Educating communities is good, to help them reduce heat island effect and know emergency plans to do if a wildfire strikes.
The biggest way to help though is to vote in councillors and politicians that use environmental knowledge to help reduce use of fossil fuels and flammable plantations nearby, and use methods to naturally cool areas like tree-planting and other climate change prevention measures. Done en-masse, this is the best way to help prevent heatwaves.
Heat Waves are Causing Wildfires
In Hawaii (August 2023), wildfires burned down 5 square miles of local homes and businesses, and will take years to rebuild. The likely cause was climate change but some say fallen power lines may have also contributed.
The fires (on Maui and Big Island) killed at least 106 people and forced thousands of people to leave their homes and hotels. The town of Lahaina was more or less destroyed. Even six months later, almost 5000 people (many with pets) were still in emergency accommodation.
In Canada, the British Columbian village of Lytton broke all-time records in 2021, and caused a wildfire that destroyed most buildings. Other causes to wildfires include flares (which oil companies use to burn off gas released from the ground, when drilling for oil).
