Skip to main content

What Are The Siberian Fires?

Photos show scale of massive fires tearing through Siberian forests
Credit: Mongabay

Wildfires have raged on in 2020, leaving millions affected; the Siberian Wildfires are not any different. Siberia has been burning for months due to a spike in temperatures causing extreme heat, consequently leading to rampant wildfires. However, what is especially worrying is that there has been no major news coverage about the issue at hand. 


The History

The fires have been burning hectares of land since the beginning of 2020. According to Greenpeace Russia, it is reported that 19 million hectares and 47 million acres of forests, steppes, and fields have been burnt across Siberia since January. Additionally, although fires have occurred in remote areas, villages and towns nearby have been affected due to the smoke impacting the air quality in the region. Due to the poor air quality of the region, the symptoms of the COVID-19 could greatly aggravate the issue. 


According to National Geographic, if the fires become a regular occurrence in Siberia, this will lead to thawing the tundra which could dramatically change the landscapes of the ecosystem. Furthermore, as the fires continue to sprawl around the region, it has allowed the tundra to become a climate hotspot that is heating up faster than the rest of the planet. 


The Opinions

As the fires continue to burn the region, multiple environmental organizations and climate specialists have spoken up regarding the issue. Amber Soja, a National Institute of Aerospace and expert on Siberian wildfires, has said that the fires are large and are far from “burning down”. 


The fires have been affecting the soil as well. Soja also says that the scorched forests can transform into “pyrogenic tundra”, as the fires kill off the trees and burn the seeds stored in the soil. This leads to shrubs taking its place which can lead to an increase in fires as shrubs absorb heat, making it susceptible to fires in the future. 


Furthermore, Greenpeace Russia’s forest expert, Alexey Yaroshenko, has said that only “95% of the registered area of forest are fires that no one extinguishes at all - fires in the so-called ‘control zones’.” The Russian authorities are only allowed to extinguish 5% of the forest fires as it is allowed by law not to extinguish the fires in the ‘control zones’ causing the fires to continue to burn without any external help. Additionally, Yaroshenko has also said that these fires are enabling climate change as the growing forest fires are transforming the forests into “net source of carbon dioxide”.


The conclusion

The Siberian Wildfires have increased the risk of climate change, hence, escalating the risk of arctic permafrost melting. Lack of global awareness of these fires has led to no external action, it is becoming increasingly obvious the risk of climate change, we must act now to save our future from a volatile climate.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cancel Culture : Necessary or Out of Hand?

From singers to athletes to politicians to YouTubers and celebrities, many individuals have been “cancelled” in today’s world. Celebrities and social media influencers face the “cancel culture” the most as a result of their controversial actions, opinions and statements, predominantly from their past. The concept of “cancelling” someone refers to their online shaming and public boycotting by the masses, usually on social media which results in them facing major backlash from millennials and Gen Z. Today, many believe that the biggest endorser of this cancel culture is President Donald Trump himself against anyone who speaks against him or his actions.  History The movement to boycott an individual and essentially shame them online, rose to prominence in 2017 when the younger generations began calling out celebrities and influencers on their offensive language and action from the past. This has resulted in the mass shaming of numerous individuals over the years.  YouTubers, act...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is Kamala Harris a prosecutor for the people?

Presidential Candidate Joe Biden revealed on Tuesday afternoon that he had chosen California Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate for Vice President. This announcement sparked an outpouring of responses - many hailed Harris as a favorable choice given her experience as a U.S. senator, having already been put through the media wringer as a former presidential candidate, and being the first woman of color ever to be a part of a major party’s presidential ticket. Harris, the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants, is Black and Asian-American.  But contrary to the Democratic establishment’s promotion of Harris's vice presidential candidacy, a substantial cohort of progressives and liberals greeted the news with critiques of her career, both as a prosecutor and lawmaking Senator. From denying affirming healthcare to a trans inmate to barring forums sex workers used to protect themselves, the former “ top cop ” has a concerning record of endangering the American community’s most...
Post a Comment
Read more

Why is Hollywood immune to the #MeToo movement?

Fueled by the persistent gender inequalities and attitudes about gender and sexuality, our social environment has evolved to represent something that knowingly allows sexual violence to be normalized and justified. With the rise of the #MeToo movement, the eyes of feminists have been on Hollywood. Feminists around the world describe a “ matrix of sexism ” in which elements of rape culture in cinema have formed a taken-for-granted backdrop to their everyday lives. We readily discuss examples we witness through cinema and TV, including victim-blaming, “slut-shaming,” rape jokes, the celebration of male sexual conquest, and demeaning sexualized representations of women.  Rape culture and sexual assault have ingrained into the lives of anybody with a Netflix subscription or ticket from their local movie theater. With recent social media upsurge over a Polish Film, 365 days , many viewers around the world criticized Netflix for providing a platform for ‘cinema’ that romanticizes kidnap...
Post a Comment
Read more