Fires in Spain lead to record-breaking CO2 releases
The ongoing forest fires in Spain and Portugal have caused a significant crisis in air quality and CO2 emissions, reaching levels never before seen in the past 23 years.
Last weekend, smoke plumes from the fires covered the western half of France, and the smoke from the Spanish forest fires has traveled several hundred kilometers, affecting air quality over a large part of the country. The smoke has also reached the United Kingdom.
The combustion of vegetation in the Iberian Peninsula has shown a "spectacular" increase in greenhouse gases, with the total estimated emissions of CO2 from the Spanish fires in just 7 to 8 days reaching the highest annual level ever recorded for Spain in the last two decades. By August 20, 22 million tonnes of CO2 had been released into the atmosphere due to the fires.
The Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge officially reported the highest ever measured CO2 emission level in Spain due to the wildfires on August 19, 2022. In Portugal, emissions are nearing 10 million tonnes of CO2, although this figure remains below the previous record set in 2017.
The World Health Organization (WHO) refers to the organization's recommendations for air quality, and the concentrations of PM2.5 fine particles in Spain, as observed by the Spanish air quality monitoring network and the Cams forecasting and follow-up system, have deteriorated significantly, far exceeding WHO recommendations.
The very small PM2.5 particles penetrate deeply into the respiratory tract, posing a serious health risk to those living in affected areas. The smoke from the forest fires in Spain has negatively impacted air quality over a large part of the country, and the smoke from the fires has also had harmful effects beyond the areas directly affected by the fires.
Fires have occurred in the northwest regions of Castile and León, Galicia, and Asturias, as well as in Extremadura, in the west of the country. The entire burned area in Spain dates from the last two weeks of the heatwave.
The Cams system is a forecasting and follow-up system for air quality in Spain, and Copernicus, the observatory, made the statement about the impact of the smoke on air quality in Spain. The fires are ongoing, and the final tally of CO2 emissions is not yet known.
The situation highlights the urgent need for action to combat the growing threat of wildfires and their impact on air quality and the environment.
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