Wildfires in Canada have emitted more CO2 than almost all of the world’s countries combined in a year. They have released 647 million tons of carbon atoms into the atmosphere, equivalent to 2.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide. Ultrafine particles from jet fuel pose a health risk.
Wildfires in Canada have emitted more CO2 than almost all countries in the world combined in a year. They have released 647 million tons of carbon atoms into the atmosphere, equivalent to 2.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide. An international team of climate scientists has concluded that wildfires in Canada in 2023 have released over 2.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which is more than the annual emissions of all countries in the world except the United States, India and China. The scientists’ findings were published in an article in the scientific journal Nature.
“Last year, Canada was hit by extremely intense and long-lasting wildfires that burned seven times the area typically seen in this New World region. We estimate that these fires released more than 2.4 billion tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere, more than the annual emissions of all countries in the world except India, China and the United States,” the study says.
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This conclusion was reached by a group of American and Canadian climatologists led by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory research scientist Brendan Byrne while studying data collected by the Terra and S5P climate probes during observations of fires in Canada in May-September 2023. This information included information on shifts in the concentration of carbon monoxide, the molecules of which are actively formed during forest fires.
Climatologists used these measurements to calculate the amount of carbon dioxide released into the air during the cataclysm. To do this, the researchers determined the ratio of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide molecules, which are typically produced during wildfires in Canada, and calculated the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted by Canadian forests in May-September 2023.
Calculations by scientists have shown that forest fires in Canada have released 647 million tons of carbon atoms into the atmosphere, equivalent to 2.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide. As a result, Canadian forests have surpassed Russia, Japan, Iran, Germany, Indonesia, South Korea and other industrialized countries in terms of annual emissions, and are second only to China, the United States and India.
Similar-sized fires, as scientists’ calculations show, will begin to occur quite frequently in Canada by mid-century, when the abnormally high temperatures of the spring-summer of 2023 that caused these fires become the norm for northern regions of the New World. This indicates the need to strengthen measures aimed at preventing forest fires and associated greenhouse gas emissions, Byrne and his colleagues concluded.
Canada has been ravaged by massive wildfires over the past two years. In 2023 alone, fires burned about 5% of Canada’s total forest area, destroying more than 15 million hectares of forest, the most since 1972. Fires have continued into 2024, and by mid-August this year, another 3.4 million hectares of forest had burned in Canada, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of people.
Smoke from wildfires in Canada has reached Western Europe. On August 22, 2024, a cloud of smoke from wildfires in Canada reached Western Europe, according to the European climate change monitoring service Copernicus.
As Copernicus notes, the wildfires in northern Canada, which have been burning for weeks, have produced large volumes of smoke that have crossed the Atlantic Ocean, reached the British Isles and moved further southeast. The smoke cloud is forecast to continue moving southeast, reaching southern Italy and dissipating in the eastern Mediterranean, according to the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.
According to the daily report of the interagency Wildfire Centre of Canada, as of August 19, 2024, there are 841 fires burning in the country, of which 498 are not under control, 143 are contained and 200 have been localized. The most serious situation is observed in the province of British Columbia, where 329 fires are active. The province has declared the fifth level of emergency preparedness, which includes a request for international assistance. The report notes that since the beginning of the year, almost 5 million hectares have burned in Canada.
In late July, Canadian officials reported major fires in Alberta. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said on July 26 that 175 fires in the province were burning 2.3 million hectares, forcing the evacuation of what she estimated to be 17,000 residents.
Smoke from Yakut forest fires enveloped Magadan. A similar situation, as in Canada, but on a smaller scale, developed in the east of Russia. Smoke from Yakutia, where many forest fires were recorded, enveloped Magadan on August 22, the main department of the Russian Emergencies Ministry for the Magadan Region reported.
There are no active wildfires in the Magadan Region. The reason for the deterioration of visibility and air quality was the difficult forest fire situation in the neighboring region. Due to the northwest wind from Yakutia, smoke reached the Magadan Region.
By midnight on August 21, 2024, there were 200 forest fires on the territory of the Russian Federation covering an area of more than 530 thousand hectares, which were being actively extinguished. The largest area of fire was recorded in Yakutia – there were 55 fires on an area of almost 400 thousand hectares.
Ultrafine particles from jet fuel pose a health risk as they easily penetrate human tissue. People living near major airports are at risk from high levels of ultrafine particles (UFP) emitted by burning jet fuel, the non-governmental organisation Transport & Environment (T&E) warned on Tuesday.
UMPs, which are about 1,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair, are emitted during aircraft takeoff and landing. Because of their microscopic size, these particles easily penetrate human tissue, raising growing concerns about their health risks.
However, despite this, the regulation of UMC remains at a low level.
“Fortunately, reduced air traffic and improved jet fuel quality could mitigate the problem in the short term, with additional climate benefits,” the T&E report said.
A Brussels-based NGO analysed the concentration levels of UMPs around Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport, based on data collected by the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).
T&E extrapolated the results to 32 of Europe’s largest airports, assuming that UMF pollution increases with air traffic and is distributed evenly around each airport. It found that 52 million people living within 20 kilometres of airports are at risk of serious illness due to high levels of UMF.
Within a five-kilometre radius of Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport, RIVM researchers found UMP concentrations of between 4,000 and 30,000 particles per cubic centimetre. In the city centre, concentrations reached between 3,000 and 12,000 particles per cubic centimetre, highlighting “the important contribution of airports to UMP pollution,” T&E notes.
In February, Airparif, an organization that monitors air quality in the Paris region, recorded UMP concentrations of 23,000 particles per cubic centimeter at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. The organization found that the highest concentrations of UMPs associated with air traffic were within five kilometers of the airport, but were exceeded by other particle sources beyond ten kilometers.
Tackling ultrafine particulate matter pollution requires a comprehensive approach, including reducing the number of flights and switching to cleaner fuels. T&E stresses the need for increased monitoring and clear regulations to reduce UFPM emissions.