Wildfires: not just an overseas issue
With wildfires currently burning in many countries across the world, we look at how wildfires here in the UK are increasing in terms of frequency and intensity and to call for better land-use planning and management for new housing stock to mitigate the impact of wildfires.
There were more fires in England and Wales in just five months in 2020, than there were for the whole of 2019, which itself was a new record. Statistics from The European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) showed that there were at least 91 large fires, destroying an estimated 14,000 hectares across the UK - from Loch Garve in Scotland to Dorset on the south coast.
- New Scientist reported there were nearly a hundred large wildfires in 2019 alone in the UK. In June 2018, a fire on Saddleworth Moor near Manchester burned for five days and made pollution levels spike.
- In 2020, homes were evacuated around Chobham Common on the south-western fringes of London, with 60 hectares of land destroyed — an area the size of 75 football pitches.
- EFFIS data for the first week of August 2020, showed a 600 per cent rise in the number of UK fires since the start of 2018, compared with the previous three year period
In 2021 we have already seen a number of serious wildfires, with those affecting Devon and Cornwall in February particularly notable. Since then the very dry weather in many parts of the UK in July put wildfire prone areas on high alert.
Paul Redington, Regional Major Loss Manager, Expert Property Team, at Zurich, said: “We are seeing a worrying trend in terms of the increase in frequency, intensity, and longevity of wildfire seasons, which many people think is only an issue for far-away countries, with hot climates, such as Australia. It’s true to say that the hazard is especially high in climate zones where there is enough rainfall to allow vegetation to flourish some of the time, but where there are also long periods of warm weather with little precipitation, for example, California, in the US. Closer to home this week, we’ve witnessed the catastrophic impact that wildfires have had in Turkey and Greece, especially with regards to its people and their physical and mental health, together with the impact on the land, wildlife and international tourism – all of significant importance to the regeneration of local resources and economic recovery post-Covid. Whilst we haven’t yet seen anything of that scale here in the UK, we cannot be complacent about the future threat.
Climate change indicators: Impact on wildfires
“We believe the increase in wildfires is due to a combination of factors, including longer drier periods, warmer air, increasingly strong winds and deforestation. With rising temperatures as a result of climate change, a heavy accumulation of “fuel” such as dry grass which effectively becomes tinder and winds travelling in from the East, this creates the perfect conditions for wildfires which decimate forests and threaten local communities.
“Although UK wildfires are seemingly small-scale compared to blazes experienced in hotter, drier countries overseas, the rise in incidents of serious wildfires could be more challenging to control in the future. We are, therefore, committed to working with stakeholders to refocus land-use policies for smarter and more sustainable land-use planning and management. This includes actions such as planners paying more attention to granting permission in wildfire vulnerable areas of the UK and avoiding construction of new-build housing stock on the edge of moorland..
Furthermore, we need to increase public awareness about the risks of fire in our UK forests and moorlands. Something as seemingly innocuous as using a disposable barbeque, or not properly extinguishing a cigarette could cause intense flames within moments. The Co-op group recently announced its decision to remove instant barbeques from its National Park-based stores in an attempt to reduce wildfires
Extinguishing these blazes can be a huge drain on precious resources, involving the fire service, volunteers with hand beaters, All Terrain Vehicles with fogging equipment, and the deployment of large machinery to create fire breaks and sometimes even helicopters with water bombing equipment. Some of the most serious wildfires in the UK, have taken up to five days to extinguish.
“This is an issue that requires cross-sector collaboration, including the Government, local council planning, housing and fire services, public sector companies including utilities, housing associations, National Park representatives, representatives of the farming community, insurers and developers - we must all work together to ensure that policies are effectively focussed and coordinated.
