A larger part of the Netherlands will have to deal with an increase in more intense wildfires in the future, which will have a major impact on society. Experts from the Netherlands Institute for Public Safety (NIPV), the KNMI, the VU University in Amsterdam, Deltares and Wageningen University & Research warn against this in a joint report. The knowledge institutes issue a ‘wildfire signal’.
The future wildfires will increasingly be intense fires that cannot be extinguished, but only burn out when there is no more fuel, such as trees and plants. This is the conclusion of researcher and project leader Hans Hazebroek. “In combination with a further densification of our country, this will lead to a greater impact on health, well-being, nature and the economy.” Due to the warming of the climate and the increasingly warmer summers in the Netherlands, more and more vegetation is becoming combustible. This ensures that the number of fire-sensitive days will increase, the researchers say. Due to these developments, the wildfires will no longer be fightable with “the current tactics, technology and capacity of the fire service”.
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Due to the further densification of the Netherlands, the wildfires will also lead to a greater impact, according to the report. “People will have to flee more often, there will be more direct and indirect damage and failure of vital infrastructure and irreparable damage to flora and fauna will occur more often.” People’s health will also be threatened more often, not only for people who are in or around nature reserves, but also for the fire brigade who have to work under more difficult conditions.
To limit the consequences and dangers of wildfires, the experts advise that the prevention and control of wildfires “become a structural part of the fire service system”. The risk of wildfires must also be taken into account when designing the Dutch landscape, and more knowledge must be gathered by governments, fire brigades and site managers about the development of the wildfire risk.
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