2017 will be marked in Portugal’s history as the year that hell came down on earth. The larges devastation in one single year caused by forest fires in Portugal’s recorded history had its peak in October the 15th, with 400 active fires all over the country. Even though the country’s performance hasn’t been positive in the last few decades, these year forest fires constituted an absolute choque never seen before. The lost of over 115 lifes, the devastation of 500 thousands hectares of land, the destruction of hundreds houses, and the social, environmental and economic effects associated seem to finally awaken society to the importance of forest fires problem. But will this be the last year of Portugal’s forest fires? The economic interests behind all this pain and court’s benevolent punishment for these crimes increase this terrorist act. It is important to remember that the of impact these fires is serious, even after being extinguished. One of the gases that might unbalance the greenhouse effect and that contributes to global warming resulting in a big environmental degradation on ecosystems and landscapes is CO2. As damage as it , the lost of biodiversity of the affected areas and their respective species ( animal and plant). One consequence, especially for herbivores, is the degradation of the habitat of surviving species, which compromises the source of food for these beings. Another problem, and that concerns the process of extinguishing the fire, is the use of salt water. By salinizing the soil, it has a negative impact, which may delay the normalization of the natural balance of the forest and contaminate the natural water resources. A reversible problem, which however, has plagued the country for years without end and can be avoided or diminished through some efforts. We are talking about the population that has been felt on the interior regions, were there are fewer regulations of the soils, control and watch of the forests. Also involved is the installation of very extensive monocultures in Portuguese forests, which leads to the rapid spread of fire to very distant areas. One of the examples is eucalyptus, an exotic species that burns very easily. Global warming is also one of the responsables. The summers are getting warmer and the new regime of afforestation and reforestation favors the planting of trees like eucalyptus. A very serious measure on which Quercus and other entities are against.   This year’s tragedies let to the resignation of the minister of internal affairs of Portugal.

Location

Spain

Environmental impact

• Biodiversity loss – Ecosystem destruction

Ethical/ legal issues

• A clean and prosperous environment and a safe and pleasant habitat

Information sources & materials

Content repository