Australia ’s Wildfires and Climate Change Are Making One Another Worse in a Vicious, Devastating Circle

The hot, dry conditions that primed southeastern Australia’s forest and fields for the bushfires that have been ravaging the country since September are likely to continue, scientists warn — and climate change has likely made the situation much worse. Over the past few months, the bushfires have already scorched millions of acres, killed two dozen people, and slaughtered an estimated half a billion animals in the country, where it is currently summer. But scientists say that the risk of additional fires remains high. Southeastern Australia has been “abnormally dry” since September, which means that it would need significant rainfall repeatedly over a period of weeks to become damp enough to cut down the risk of fires, says Dan Pydynowski, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather. Unfortunately, such prolonged rain does not appear to be imminent in the next few weeks. Although the region experienced some rain early this week, Pydynowski warns that it has “not been impressive” and is not enough to substantially reduce fire risk. Significant rain from Tropical Storm Blake is also not expected to reach the area most affected by the fires. “Everything is so dry right now, it doesn’t take much for a fire to spark and blow up and spread,” Pydynowski says. Adam Ferguson for TIMEA cemetery recently hit by bushfires near Mogo, New South Wales, on Jan. 5. Climate scientists warn that the scale and devastation of the wildfires are clea...
Source: TIME: Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Australia climate change onetime Wildfires Source Type: news