It is well known that the Arctic ice is melting due to global warming, but in fact2019In the summer of 2006, the Arctic Circle and its surroundings were the mostfirewas happening.2019Siberia and Alaska in the year 2000(meter (i.e. a gauge))The total number of fires in and around the Arctic Circle, including Greenland, Canada4,700 casesThe area burned down was more than80,0003Thousand K㎡㎡㎡㎡The first time this happened was in Experts called this an "unprecedented and extraordinary situation.appraisedThe Arctic is the place where the world's largest number of people live. Now, this Arctic Circle(note (supplementary information) symbol1)What caused the "abnormal situation" in the "Mere Old Man"? What were the effects and what initiatives are being taken to address them?

Fire in Siberia (Photo: Tatiana Bulyonkova/Flickr [CC BY-SA 2.0 ])

Characteristics and Mechanisms of Arctic Fires

Fires in the Arctic are a natural phenomenon, and it is common every year for such fires to be ignited by lightning. Unlike in the past, however,2019year of the fire.Number of Incidents and Area Burnedis an anomaly. The area burned by fires in Siberia peaked at7In May.30,000㎢The fire exceeded9It lasted until March. In addition, the smoke generated by this effect was in the atmosphere.7 million㎢This extends to theEU(EU)The total area exceeds the total area of the entire country. The area burned by fires in Alaska is10,000㎢and one fire in Greenland alone has caused up to375㎢s forests and grasslands disappeared. Why have fires in the Arctic increased to an unprecedented degree? These fires have been greatly affected by climate change.

In the Arctic, compared to other regionstwiceThe warming is progressing at a rate of about 1.5 degrees Celsius per year. There are a number of factors that may be contributing to this rapid warming, but the main one is that the reduction of snow and sea ice has reduced the amount of sunlight reflected off the ground and increased the absorption of sunlight on the ground surface, which has warmed a larger area.causeIn the As a result, this is causing the land to dry out. This phenomenon is accelerating global warming and creating fire-prone temperature conditions. For example,7In Alaska in June, temperatures were32°CThe fires were intense, triggered by hot lightning and strong winds, under conditions of dry ground and above-normal temperatures, with some days of record highs ofextensiveThe following is a list of the most common problems with the

What makes these Arctic fires different from ordinary wildfires and other fires is that, first of all, many of them are left unattended when they start. Fires in the Arctic rarely have a direct impact on people's infrastructure or buildings. The cost of traveling to remote areas to extinguish fires is high, and because they are so widespreadFirefighting efforts often go unattended. This increases the risk that the fire will not be extinguished and will spread further.

Arctic fires are also unique in the way they burn. Tall trees do not grow in the peat soils of the Arctic due to the low oxygen content of the soil. Therefore, the forest canopy is not overgrown, allowing sunlight to reach the ground more easily and encouraging the growth of wet midge mosses. Normal peatlands have a maximum95Percent is moisture, which prevents the fire from spreading in the event of a fire. However, when peat dries out due to global warming, peat is veryhighly flammableIt becomes a substance. Arctic fires not only fuel trees and shrubs, but when the heat reaches peat, the Arctic soil, it begins to burn peat as fuel as well.

Arctic forest fires usually last only a few hours or days, but thispeat fireburns on underground peat as fuel and spreads slowly, sometimes lasting for weeks. Because peat contains large amounts of combustible methane gas, fires can persist for long periods of time, even in cold, wet conditions. In addition, peatlands are highly susceptible to ignition by lightning. In fact, global warming isIncrease the number of lightning strikesThis makes them increasingly prone to fires.

Fire spread by peat layer near the Baird Mountains in Alaska (Photo: Western Arctic National Parklands/Flickr [CC BY 2.0])

Impact of Arctic Fires

One of the problems that fires in the Arctic are causing is carbon dioxide emissions. The fires in the Arctic have caused6In May.50 megatons, ,7In May.79 megatonsIt is estimated that carbon dioxide emissions of This isAmount of carbon dioxide emitted by Belgium per yearemissions are higher than those of the previous year. Why is such a large amount of carbon dioxide being emitted? It is because the fires in the Arctic are spread by peat. Peat stores large amounts of carbon. In the Arctic, the cold temperatures slow microbial growth and decomposition, and the carbon is stored in the soil. The cold forests and Arctic tundra contain the largest amount of carbon in the world's soils.50%.is estimated to be stored.

The burning of this peat releases large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and the underlying layer ofThawing permafrostresult in the formation of a "permafrost". Permafrost is soil or rock that has been frozen for several years or more, even during the summer months. When permafrost melts, the frozen soil decomposes, releasing more carbon. Fires in peatlands smolder underground for long periods of time, melting the soil and permafrost deep underground. As a result, the normal firetwices carbon burns as fuel.

Recent permafrost thawing has created beehive-like depressions in the land, causing subsidence and soil collapsequestion (e.g. on a test)The area has become a In some places, new lakes are formed, creating an uneven topography called thermokarst. Whether fire-damaged land subsides or recovers depends on how much permafrost is present in the subsurface. Other factors include the extent to which the fire has damaged the surface organic layer and the weather conditions following the fire.

Siberian thermokarst terrain (Photo: Peter Prokosch(www.grida.no/resources/1791)/Flickr [ CC BY-NC-SA 2.0])

Fires in the Arctic do not only affect the soil. harmful pollutants and toxic gases into the atmosphere.releaseDoing. The thick smoke from the fires in Siberia has been captured by satellite imagery,Alaska and parts of the west coast of CanadaThe black soot contained in this smoke is spread to the The black soot in this smoke (soot (of burnt pine needles, etc.))is harmful to humans and animals and can enter the lungs and bloodstream. In addition, as soot accumulates on white snow and ice, less sunlight is reflected, and sunlight and heat are absorbed by the earth's surface, further warming thepromotionThe following is a summary of the results of the study.

Fires burn dry peat, permafrost melts, methane is released, and glaciers disappear. As temperatures rise, fires will increase and black soot will accumulate on the ice, further accelerating global warming. This vicious cycle will cause unprecedented and drastic climate change.

Crumbling layers of permafrost (Photo: U.S. Geological Survey/Flickr[public domain])

Fires in the Arctic are also affecting ecosystems. Vast northern ecosystems are beginning to be transformed by fire. New vegetation is growing in unexpected places. Studies conducted in Alaska show that fire has reduced the amount of white spruce in the forests.Approx. 30%Decrease, black spruce isApprox. 15%It is expected to decrease, and deciduous trees will encroach on the land there. Where there were originally coniferous forests before the fire.Young deciduous forestbegin to grow, and the very definition of a cold zone may change. Vegetation changes caused by fire will also affect wildlife distribution and habitat. In the ArcticCaribou population halved.Some reports indicate that caribou have been known to eat lichens. The caribou's food source is lichen, which is slow-growing and takes time to recover after a fire. In the burned areas, the caribou were unable to locate lichens, their food source, and their population declined.

Fire Fighting Initiatives

In response to the fires in eastern Russia and Siberia, the Russian authorities initially said that the fires in areas far from human habitation were a natural phenomenon and did not pose a direct threat to people, and that firefighting was not economically feasible.statementThe fire was a fire that had been raging for several years. In response, the residents grew increasingly critical, and a petition demanding that the authorities take action for their inadequate response to the fire was100After being signed and filed by 10,000,000 people, a state of emergency in five statesdeclarationThe company was then Subsequently,2019counter for years (following a number in the hito-futa-mi counting system)7month31On Sunday, President Vladimir Putin asked the military to support his efforts to fight fires.commandand firefighting equipment.10Aircraft and10Helicopters were sent to those areas. However, by the time the military was introduced, forests as large as Belgium had already been burned, and there were concerns about delays in response and lack of funds for firefighting activities.criticismis endless.

A scene from the meeting on fires in Siberia (Photo: President of Russia [) CC BY 4.0])

The Canadian province of Alberta is2019Firefighters from eight other provinces, the Northwest Territories, the United States, South Africa, and other parts of the world came together to fight the fires in Canada, which were the most destructive of all the countries in 2010.fire fightinghave taken place. However, as climate change increases the number of fires in the Arctic, even cooperative firefighting efforts in each region will not be able to keep up, and the region will face the long-term challenge of keeping the region safe.8Due to a fire in the neighborhood in early June.evacuation advisoryThe wildland fire management officer for the city of Quinault in Canada's Yukon Territory, which was receiving the fire, said that fighting fires alone is not enough to protect the community and emphasized the need to establish evacuation plans and invest in fire research in anticipation of further fuel shortages.

Anchorage, Alaska's largest city, is an "imminent risk to public safety."Quite high.The city is ranked as a "good" place to live. Anchorage is surrounded by forests, and fire is a major threat. Anchorage foresters are working to address this issue by coordinating fire mitigation programs and by helping homes and neighborhoods reduce their risk of fire.firewise(Firewise)The program promotes a program called It urges people to plant thin trees around their homes, install noncombustible roofs, and make sure firefighters can get there quickly.

A fire near Sisimiut, a city in western Greenland, an autonomous region of Denmark, could not be handled by the local fire brigade alone.8From Denmark in May.reliefrushed to the scene. The fire there had already1It has been going on for about a month and threatened to spread to inhabited areas. If the fires were not contained and continued into the winter, they would have a further negative impact on Greenland's natural environment and the melting of the glaciers.

Fire in Kekatta, Greenland (Pierre Markuse/Flickr [ CC BY 2.0])

Fires in the Arctic are a natural phenomenon that occurs every year, and because they are slowly spreading in remote areas, they rarely receive significant media coverage. However,2019In 2006, fires reached record levels. Climate change has caused such an imminent crisis, and it is spurring climate change again. Once started, immediate action must be taken across the globe before the vicious cycle of Arctic fires is overlooked and no action is taken.

note (supplementary information) symbol1　The Arctic Circle is defined as the latitude north of66degree (angle, temperature, scale, etc.)33The area is north of the Arctic Circle. However, fires also occur around the Arctic Circle, so the area around the Arctic Circle is also included here.

Writer: Shiori Tomohara

Graphic: Saki Takeuchi

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