A record one million hectares - equivalent to about half the land area of Wales - have burned across the European Union so far this year, making it the worst wildfire season since records began in 2006. Spain and Portugal have been hit especially hard, with roughly 1% of the entire Iberian Peninsula scorched, according to EU scientists. The worsening fire season in the Mediterranean has been linked directly to climate change in a separate study by the World Weather Attribution group at Imperial College London. Experts warn that more frequent and severe fires across Europe are likely to continue in the future.
More than two thirds of the area burned in the EU is in Spain and Portugal alone. In Spain, more than 400,000 hectares have burned since the beginning of this year up until 26 August, according to the Copernicus European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). This record is more than six times the Spanish average for this time period between 2006 and 2024. Neighbouring Portugal has also suffered a record burn area of 270,000 hectares so far - almost five times the average for the same period. The combined burn area across the Iberian peninsula this year is 684,000 hectares - four times the area of Greater London, and most of it burned in just two weeks.
Fires have been concentrated in forested areas of northern Portugal and in Spain's north-western regions of Galicia, Asturias and Castile and León. Protected areas like Picos de Europa National Park have been impacted, as well as major routes on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage network which usually attracts more than 100,000 visitors in the summer months. The events have triggered the largest known deployment of the EU civil protection mechanism's firefighting force. Smoke from fires has dramatically decreased air quality in the area, with southerly winds sending smoke as far as France and the UK.
Climate change makes the conditions leading to wildfires more likely, but in a vicious cycle, the fires also release more planet-warming carbon dioxide gas (CO2) into our atmosphere. CO2 released by fires in Spain this year has reached a record 17.68 million tonnes, according to the EU. This is more than any total annual CO2 emissions since 2003 from wildfires in that country, when data was first recorded by satellites. This amount is more than the total annual CO2 emitted by all of Croatia in 2023.
Firefighters have been battling blazes right across Europe this summer. Climate change has made fire-prone conditions in Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus about 10 times more likely, according to a study by the World Weather Attribution group at Imperial College London. In addition, rural depopulation is contributing to the intense wildfires; as young people relocate to cities for jobs, previously managed land becomes overgrown, increasing fire risks. Experts call for urgent measures to address climate change and management practices to mitigate wildfire risks.
More than two thirds of the area burned in the EU is in Spain and Portugal alone. In Spain, more than 400,000 hectares have burned since the beginning of this year up until 26 August, according to the Copernicus European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). This record is more than six times the Spanish average for this time period between 2006 and 2024. Neighbouring Portugal has also suffered a record burn area of 270,000 hectares so far - almost five times the average for the same period. The combined burn area across the Iberian peninsula this year is 684,000 hectares - four times the area of Greater London, and most of it burned in just two weeks.
Fires have been concentrated in forested areas of northern Portugal and in Spain's north-western regions of Galicia, Asturias and Castile and León. Protected areas like Picos de Europa National Park have been impacted, as well as major routes on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage network which usually attracts more than 100,000 visitors in the summer months. The events have triggered the largest known deployment of the EU civil protection mechanism's firefighting force. Smoke from fires has dramatically decreased air quality in the area, with southerly winds sending smoke as far as France and the UK.
Climate change makes the conditions leading to wildfires more likely, but in a vicious cycle, the fires also release more planet-warming carbon dioxide gas (CO2) into our atmosphere. CO2 released by fires in Spain this year has reached a record 17.68 million tonnes, according to the EU. This is more than any total annual CO2 emissions since 2003 from wildfires in that country, when data was first recorded by satellites. This amount is more than the total annual CO2 emitted by all of Croatia in 2023.
Firefighters have been battling blazes right across Europe this summer. Climate change has made fire-prone conditions in Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus about 10 times more likely, according to a study by the World Weather Attribution group at Imperial College London. In addition, rural depopulation is contributing to the intense wildfires; as young people relocate to cities for jobs, previously managed land becomes overgrown, increasing fire risks. Experts call for urgent measures to address climate change and management practices to mitigate wildfire risks.
