How wildfires and extreme heatwaves are being brought on by climate change across Europe

A huge heatwave and wildfire that are being fueled by climate change are wreaking havoc on much of Europe and destroying the region's biodiversity. On July 20, 2022, hundreds of residents of Athens' mountainside suburbs were evacuated because of a raging wildfire. As a wildfire burns through Mount Penteli in the suburbs of Athens, Greece, firefighters have used planes and helicopters to control the spread.

The United Kingdom beat its record for the highest temperature on July 19 when Charlwood, in Surrey, southwest of London, recorded a provisional reading of 39.1 degrees Celsius (102.4 degrees Fahrenheit). Many passengers were left stranded after all trains from London's King's Cross station were cancelled. In 64 different locations, the majority along the western Atlantic coast, France also reported new record high temperatures.

Britain and most of Europe are experiencing a fierce heat wave that is causing grassland fires, runway melting, burning firefighting trucks, and breaking temperature records.

Source: Safalta.com

The region's atmospheric monitoring service issued a warning on July 19 stating that the excessive heat in Europe is producing extremely high levels of dangerous ozone pollution and that there is also an "extreme" risk of wildfires in several parts of western Europe.   If you are preparing for competitive exams and looking for expert guidance, you can download our General Knowledge Free Ebook Download Now.

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Thousands of hectares of wildfires are being fought by firefighters and soldiers from Spain, Portugal, France, Greece, and Morocco around Europe. This is compatible with climate change, say scientists.

In many places of the world, including India and the US, heatwaves have increased in frequency in recent years. They added that major economies are still trying to implement a successful climate strategy that can address this looming catastrophe at a time when strict efforts are needed to prevent the rise in temperature.

The overall carbon dioxide emissions caused by wildfires in Spain reached their highest level during June and July since 2003. Apocalyptic sights of devastation have been caused by two large fires in southwest France.

High amounts of ground-level ozone are being caused by the heatwave, according to researchers. Unlike the protective layer in the high atmosphere, which protects human health, ground-level ozone is a significant greenhouse gas.

According to Mark Parrington, Senior Scientist with the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, people who are exposed to high levels of ground-level ozone pollution may develop respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

When emissions from fossil fuels and other man-made pollution react with sunlight, ozone is the result. To combat climate change, experts have emphasized that reducing emissions of these pollutants is "critical," especially because dangerous levels of daily maximum surface ozone were achieved in nations like Spain, Italy, and Portugal.

With the increase in global temperature, very high levels of surface ozone are being observed in numerous regions of northern and western Europe, and they are anticipated to peak even higher in the next few days.

The following health hazards can result from excessive levels of surface ozone:

-Continuous coughing

– A sore throat

-Headaches

-Risk of asthma attacks increasing

Seven times bigger than the one over Antarctica, the ozone hole over the tropics was found by a group of researchers from Canada's Waterloo University. According to reports, the new ozone hole has existed for more than 30 years. The study was released in the journal AIP Advances.

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