Anna Miller

Giambanco

ENG170

27 February 2023

Flames vs. Humanity

Wildfires have become an escalating crisis around the globe, creating devastation to all organisms on earth, and reducing our quality of life. These catastrophes are leading our environment into a steep decline— the situation continues to escalate, taking people’s homes, polluting our environment, and tearing away our wildlife. All outcomes of humans’ disturbing nature, issues we have contributed to and have the power to change. The planet’s climate outlook into the future is foreseen to worsen as we continue to choose our lifestyles, treat the life around us as we do, and abuse our natural resources. There are ways to manage the blazes of fire that damage our domain, but more effort is what is needed to reduce damage. Humans’ failure to clean up territory and unconsciously leaving ignition behind are major issues that lead to an inferno. It should be noted that the planet once lived without humans, meaning it can survive on its own, but we as humans can not live without Earth. I fear continuing to practice our activities will ultimately end in a lifeless world where we will have to ration our resources and go through a radical change to survive. 

Within the past decade, our climate crisis has risen tenfold causing almost double the amount of damage to our environment than in previous years. Fires in the wild are not uncommon and will naturally occur when given a dry, hot climate, and in most cases, a natural wildfire can be caused by a lightning strike. Olivia Lai, the author of an article surrounding the facts of wildfires provides information of enlightenment on the subject: “For every one degree Celsius rise in temperature, it results in a 12% increase in the frequency of lightning strikes” (Lai). This statistic shows increases in the severity of reoccurring wildfires, eluding the fact that climate change is the reason for persistent and elongated fire seasons. The state of California has been known for its forest industry, hot climate, and high risk of wildfires therefore, there is no shocking reaction when a fire occurs. The recurrence of these events has only led to the normalization of chaos, most people are not aware of the damages wildfires can cause that directly relate to our individual lives. Wildfires have a huge influence on air pollution: “Smoke is made up of a complex mixture of gases and fine particles, which can penetrate deep into the lungs” (Lai). Not only does the smoke contaminate the air we breathe but, the contaminated air can cause health defects to all organisms. This leads to all sorts of issues including damage to crops, hazards to wildlife, and weakens the immune systems of all living organisms.

The largest wildfire in the 21st century, The Australian Black Summer, brought severe damage to the environment and all life on Earth. This event created much tragedy as it killed a large number of people and billions of animals which led to their endangerment. We as humans can not live without an ecosystem, the endangerment of any animal will cause a disturbance in the food chain. Breaking the energy pyramid induces havoc on our natural order taking plantation with it. A life without plants is a life without soil-grown food, clean water, and medication—one without color or the beauty of nature, a world filled by grey clouds in the sky. A world I would not want to live in and I guarantee no one else would want to imagine. The ozone layer is the atmosphere that protects life on earth from exposure to ultraviolet light, something that can generate disorder in all ecosystems: “The smoke from Black Summer also resulted in the depletion of the ozone layer by 1%, an amount which typically takes a decade to recover” (Lai). Dismantling our atmosphere will lead to direct health issues for all species including humans; it could give you cancer, create mutations in DNA, and result in death. Without the ozone layer, humans can not live, the ultraviolet light would overheat the planet leaving us with nothing. I believe without proper knowledge of the severity of this issue, it will fabricate an inhabitable earth.

The North Complex fire occurred in the state of California and lasted about four months. It started with separate combustions that eventually emerged into one large fire. A news article speaks about the wildfire and what scientist Scott Stephens has to say about it. Statistics have shown: “By the time the fire was fully contained Dec. 3, it had burned 318,935 acres, killed 16 people and damaged or destroyed 2,455 buildings, many of them homes” (Serna 1). Fires are not only leading to pollution and health issues but, are taking away the homes of both humans and animals. Ignorance of the effects of wildfires can only last so long before it affects you and there is no choice but to face the consequences. Losing your home to flames is not an ideal situation however at this rate, it is becoming inevitable to face losing our one collective home. There is no way to live a prosperous life without a sustainable habitat or proper shelter. Humans are the major cause of all wildfires, The North Complex fire was mainly caused by humans’ lack of environmental maintenance: “The Camp fire exploded, in part, because logs and dead trees from the 2008 Humboldt fire were left to dry and rot where they died and fell” (Serna 1). Leaving behind trees and loose plantation is what helped ignite this disaster.

California is popularly known for its forest industry and cuts down thousands of trees per year. On the other hand, because not all of the trees are used, or disposed of properly it provides the perfect source for natural wildfires to spread rapidly: “A report found that careless human activities are behind about 84% of all wildfires in the US” (Lai). Giving small fires ammunition such as piles of logs creates the perfect opportunity for fires to expand, creating mass destruction. The lack of care humans give to the environment can simply be due to the lack of education and awareness. It’s essential to understand the way we influence nature and how it influences us. Each organism has a role in the ecosystem, and an imbalance in the system can aggravate the ways in which we live life. This indicates that distributing the natural ways of life will affect our daily activities, and changing our lifestyles in order to compensate for the irreversible damage will be necessary to keep existing: “Global wildfire events will increase by about 50% by the end of the century due to global warming and changes to land use patterns” (Lai). The way we treat nature needs to change. Resources have already started to become limited and it is predicted millions of acres of land have been destroyed to the point of no return. Pollution rates are dangerously high, expediting the amount of damage we produce and the rate at which we produce it. Nature has its ways of replenishing itself and self-regulating its sustainability. However, the estimate at which fire produces harmful admissions is faster than the earth can rejuvenate. This information is provided by government organizations yet, we are not taking enough action to reduce the risk of fires. More effort, money, and management need to be provided toward the issue because it will have dire consequences if ignored and time is of the essence. 

As talked about previously, fires can occur naturally in the wild and have existed for centuries. Scientists explain the role fire can play in an ecosystem and how it can be beneficial in fertilizing soil for better vegetation. Ever since fire was discovered it has been exploited: “As a management tool for manipulating ecosystems, fire has been used at least since Mesolithic times” (Moore 312). Before the Industrial Revolution, people used fire to control landscapes and fertilize the soil. One of the main products that come from fires is charcoal. There can be many benefits to adding charcoal to the ground: “Soil charcoal could have profound effects on the development of vegetation and ecosystem succession” (Moore 312). Charcoal can aid in supporting the absorption of organic molecules needed in the soil. This can lead to an increase in vegetation growth, better plant structures, and water rejuvenation when wildfires are controlled properly. It is mentioned in the article that there is seemingly no doubt that fire produces damage to the environment but, it is argued that the organisms damaged will overtime adapt to become more resilient against harsher climates. In the soil, there are organic compounds that organisms need to thrive, and sometimes the nutrients can be restricted by slow processes—“Fire may release this restriction by burning off these organic compounds to allow new developments in both soil chemistry and vegetation” (Moore 312). This claim is only effective when fires are being controlled. The most recent fires around the globe have wreaked havoc on everything surrounding it, all being uncontrollable and difficult to put out.

There are potential benefits to wildfires but overall, they do more harm than help. If there were a chance for the plantation to regrow after being burnt, the first vegetation to grow would be easily-burnable plants like bushes. At the rate our environment induces fire, it would create a vicious cycle of environmental damage. The flammable shrubs will make natural wildfires more likely to engulf in flames and spread wider. Humans already dump tons of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Considering the amount of carbon dioxide emissions wildfires leave behind, then taking away the plant life that filters our clean air— collectively results in hotter temperatures. Hotter climates result in higher risks of wildfires globally: “In the US, a typical fire season that lasts for four months is now stretched to at least six to eight months” (Lai). Fire seasons are being prolonged by climate change which is escalating due to our poor maintenance of the Earth. This extended period of time leaves no room for beneficial factors when it comes to fires in nature. It hardly leaves time for vegetation to go through the process of regrowth causing detrimental damage to areas of land. A study suggests climate change is causing permanent damage: “The proportion of sites with no regrowth almost doubled after 2000” (Supriya). Areas that have once bounced back after wildfires and have been adapted to that climate are now no longer refurbishing themselves leaving areas of land abandoned, burned, and filled with ash. It is foreseen that these areas will simply not grow back plants: “Although some forests may grow back, she says, at the very least we can say that it is going to take much longer than it once did” (Supriya). The Earth will grow back but, humanity painfully will not be able to wait that long when there is an extremely harsh demand for resources. The risk of abusing resources is higher than the reward of continuing these activities.

There are ways in which we can prevent wildfires from developing into catastrophes. Cleaning up the environment from dead plants and anything that could potentially spread or cause a fire is vital in controlling these incidences. Considering humans are the majority reason behind starting fires more awareness needs to be brought to the subject. People tend to lack in this field of expertise and often do not put out fires correctly. Campfires drenched in water would seem to demolish a fire but, this is not the case. To extinguish flames you need to wait and make sure the fire is completely out meaning it is no longer smoking, and most importantly make sure the grounds in which you used are cold. Flames can reignite from strong winds—leaving a smoking, hot pile of wood could result in another combustion. Learning ways in which you can prevent fires around you is necessary for our situation which has spread around the globe: “Adequate land management and landscape fire management planning can significantly diminish their ability to spread” (Lai). Land management demolishes the risk of wildfire spreading and becoming more severe by taking away dry fuels. If we were to remove the ammunition that embellishes fires they would be less likely to occur. Therefore, greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced, land could be restored, and our quality of life would rise. Money toward fire prevention, resources, and recovery plans need to be implemented to decrease the risk and damages. Cleaning up areas of dry fuels is an example of land management but also is mapping out areas for plantations to succeed is essential. In this case, we would be removing vegetation that is not evolved to endure the hot climate and replacing it with properly adapted plants. This way when the plantation is given harsh scenarios it can bounce back easier and faster. Even during a drought, water is not the only option to contain a fire for example in extinguishers there are potassium chemicals found in the compound that can smother flames. There are many ways to enforce fire safety that are plausible to daily life, more effort is what is needed to make a change.

There is no doubt in my mind that humans have contributed damages causing mass destruction to the environment which will inevitably affect all organisms on Earth. Forest fires are spiraling globally producing more harm than good and escalating our climate crisis. Many lives have been affected and will continue to be if action is postponed. Consequences from fire smoke have started to settle in and will continue to flourish because of the lack of effort we put into the conservation of nature. Catastrophic events are predicted to cause irreversible damage to our ecosystem which is critical for our survival. Fire prevention tactics need to be accumulated to save disastrous situations from furthering the Earth’s destruction. Without any kind of land management or precaution for wildfires, it will only lead flames to have easy access to necessary materials for expansion. The lack of knowledge and awareness cannot be tolerated anymore, there needs to be a change. Failure to abide by these standards will leave a lifeless planet covered in darkness which we won’t be able to inhabit. The most effective way for us to repair Earth is if we decide to put in the time, effort, and awareness collectively as one community.

Works Cited

Lai, Olivia. “10 Interesting Facts about Wildfires”. Americas Europe Oceania. June 2022. https://earth.org/10-interesting-facts-about-wildfires/. Accessed 19 February 2023.

Moore, Peter D. “Fire Damage Soils Our Forests.” Nature (London), vol. 384, no. 6607, 1996, 312–13, https://suny-new.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_NEW/1nnhbfk/cdi_proquest_miscellaneous_14431082.Accessed 16 February 2023.

Serna, Joseph. “Fires Did Lasting Harm to Forests; The State’s 2020 Wildfires Will Leave Many Ecosystems Altered for Centuries.” The Los Angeles Times, 2020. https://suny-new.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01SUNY_NEW/1nnhbfk/cdi_proquest_newspapers_2472248487 . Accessed 16 February 2023.

Supriya, Lakshmi. “Ecosystems Could Once Bounce Back from Wildfires. Now, They’re Being Wiped Out for Good.” Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science), 2017, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aar8089. Accessed 21 February 2023