Forest fires in southern Europe

Maciamo

Veteran member
Admin
Messages
9,971
Reaction score
3,275
Points
113
Location
Lothier
Ethnic group
Italo-celto-germanic
Global warming is causing some of the worst forest fires in historu southern Europe, and some of the worst floods in Britain. There is an obvious imbalance in rainfalls across the continent.

However, what I do not understand is how there is no prevention for forest fires. Why don't governments have airplanes spread water on the forests most at risk during period of extreme heat and drought ? It would be expensive, but surely much less than the damages caused by the fires. Thousands of houses and cars were destroyed, dozens of people died, and thousands of hectares of forest AND agricultural land went up in flames. Prevention would certainly be much less costly, even if hundreds of airplanes have to drop water all day long around these areas. It takes decades for a forest to grow back. If we do not do anything, Mediterranean Europe will become as desertic as North Africa in a few years.
 
Greece is now experiencing what has been described as the worst forest fires in the world in the last 150 years ! Over 60 people have died and entire villages and towns were wiped off the map.

I find it strange, even suspicious that the South of Europe (Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal) has been hit so badly this year, but Muslim countries in the Mediterranean were not. We haven't heard of fires in North Africa, the Middle East or Turkey. Yet, there are forest there too (esp. in Turkey or the Maghreb).

We know for sure that these fires were of criminal origin. I heard on TV that it might have been real estate speculators hoping to obtain cheap land. But who would want to live in a region where everything is burnt on hundreds of km in any direction ? It's certainly not the case.

The most plausible explanation is that it is Muslim terrorist (maybe related to Al-Qaeda) who set on these fires. After all, it is the most effective way to cause tremendous human, natural and economic (agricultural and architectural) damages upon a whole region with little risk of being found and at minimum cost. Cynical of me, maybe, but Al-Qaeda is full of deranged people who have certainly thought of doing such things.
 
I am almost shy to answer and I fully agree with you. I was silently thinking the same. One can not say such things aloud overhere, I would be called a rightist,which I am not. I'm a Socialist.

I am a little shy, because nobody else seems to answer you, than this old lady. Yet to me you seem to be a very intelligent and alert young man.

I have learnt quite a bit from your threads!
 
The most plausible explanation is that it is Muslim terrorist (maybe related to Al-Qaeda) who set on these fires. After all, it is the most effective way to cause tremendous human, natural and economic (agricultural and architectural) damages upon a whole region with little risk of being found and at minimum cost. Cynical of me, maybe, but Al-Qaeda is full of deranged people who have certainly thought of doing such things.
Be careful with thoughts like that. You'll start seeing threats everywhere and start to sound like Good ole George Dubya. I am more inclined to think that it is most likely real estate developers, as thing type of practice has happened in the past. If it was some terrorist group (it doesn't have to be Muslim, after all Greece has had its own problem groups in the past) wouldn't they be jumping up and down saying it was them? Most terrorist organisations usually shout such things from the nearest lampost, especially when it cause such damage and devastation.
 
Mycernius,

Why should the Greeks start so many fires at almost the same moment and so well organized? As Maciamo pointed out; who wants to buy such a ground completely burnt out. Which Greek would like to buy the ground where so many Greeks died?
Greece is the cradle of Europe, there is so much history in Greece that attracts ten thousands of tourists, why should that be destroyed?
Maybe you are right and have some Greeks destroyed their own country
and killed over 60 Greeks and even some children.
A real nightmare!
 
If we do not do anything, Mediterranean Europe will become as desertic as North Africa in a few years.

C'mon the situation isn't that dramatic, at least in Spain.

Despite all these fires almost every summer, there are several studies that show that Spain is one of the countries in which the forestal surface grew the most between 1990 and 2005, not only in area but also in density.

These articles talk about it:

http://terranoticias.terra.es/ciencia/articulo/estudio_espana_afirma_tierra_cada_1208147.htm

http://www.elcorreodigital.com/vizc...ociedad/espana-pais-mundo-donde_20061115.html


(sorry it is written in spanish)
 
Good point Lynx, it's so easy to get carried away and blame global warming and terrorists for every disaster.
 

This thread has been viewed 10695 times.

Back
Top