A Burning Paradise Update

By Ram Charan

The unparalleled level of destructive wildfires that have recently enveloped Australia in a whirlwind of flames and smoke is not an anomaly. Climate change is the main, if not only culprit. This national emergency has already claimed nearly 25 million acres of land from this country’s incredibly biodiverse forests. As a result, nearly half a billion animals have been killed in the quickly spreading fires. 

Australia’s wildfire season, which typically spans during the summer months from December through February, was incredibly different in 2019. In Australia, December 18th marked a record high temperature, where the mean national temperature reached 41.9°C. The unusually high temperatures, in addition to the drought that has plagued this nation for the past few years added tinder to the flames. In a series of destructive blazes helped by incredibly high wind speeds and record high temperatures, the states of Victoria and New South Wales were drowned in smoke and dust. The tourism industry, a major part of the Australian economy, collapsed, and everyday life for locals has been disrupted. 

Major fires started around September 2019 and have continued through early this year. They will likely continue well into February, which is among the peak months of summer. The fires are a result of a weather pattern that originated in the Indian Ocean called a positive Indian Ocean Dipole. Through irregular heating in this part of the ocean, warmer waters closer to the eastern coast of Africa lead to higher amounts of rain in the western portion of the Indian Ocean and a drier climate for Southeast Asia and Australia. 

This weather event, which showed the largest temperature spread between the east and west parts of the Indian Ocean in the past 60 years, is also to blame for creating the ideal conditions for Australia’s wildfires. Aside from the unusual climate events which helped to create the supersized fire, a lackluster response by the government has further compounded the national crisis. Prime Minister Scott Morrison is a conservative incumbent who panders to the coal industry that has a huge stake in Australia’s economy.

Evacuation efforts through the tireless work of thousands of volunteers has gone nearly unrecognized by the government. Disputes over pay and the apocalyptic fires rage on throughout Australia with no clear end in sight. 

Similar to Australia, California also experienced an incredibly destructive wildfire season. In recent years, both territories have been subject to incredible heat waves and record-breaking dry spells. This will often be followed by an active fire season that claims not only forest, but entire residential communities. The California wildfire season in the past year, and the year before have been incredible in their scale in damage; but, they pale in comparison to the size of fires in Australia. In recognizing the similarities and differences between the wildfires of Australia and California, one can understand that many of the same issues that happened on a smaller scale in California, will occur on a much larger scale in Australia. 

In both cases, development into areas of fire risk and the unusual weather patterns caused by climate change bring to light the fruitlessness of prioritizing economic development over the safety of our planet. The exponential growth of scale in natural disasters is a pattern that reaffirms that climate change is a serious issue. In trying to understand these complex patterns of weather, many will try to discredit the theory of climate change. 

In the case of the 2019-2020 Australian Wildfire season, political figures such as Sean Hannity and American President Donald Trump tried to focus the destructive capabilities of the wildfires on the nearly 24 people who were charged with intentionally lighting bushfires throughout the country, and another 183 who were charged with smaller misdemeanors of fire-disposal related offenses. The shameless spreading of misinformation in the case of national emergencies must stop immediately. 

In times of national emergency, doing one’s own research and trying to actively be informed about an issue is key. Through the incredible amount of information that bombards the Internet, the truth is often distorted and lost. The fires in Australia are just one such example of how natural disasters can disrupt an entire nation and it mirrors the ways in which the public reacted to California wildfires.

 By being aware of this issue and trying to possibly help Australian disaster-relief related services, such as the Australian Red Cross, we as a nation can put an end to the mindless spreading of misinformation. Although it should not be a problem, misinformation in the case of natural disasters is incredibly prevalent. Once again, staying aware and doing one’s own research are key in this ever-changing society.

Sources: [vox.com, theconversation.com, nzherald.co.nz, news.trust.org, cnet.com, climatesignal.net, bbc.com, theverge.com, sciencedirect.com, telegraph.co.uk, accuweather.com, independent.co.uk, newsweek.com, foxnews.com]

Here are a few organizations to donate to and their webpages:
https://donate.wwf.org.au/donate/koala-crisis/koala-crisis?t=AP0120O01&f=41120-213&gclid=Cj0KCQiA4NTxBRDxARIsAHyp6gCUUCbPxOaq3rADhfJAekweoudSje48OmaGRF7RHnerE8N0AR8fWc4aAtJeEALw_wcB#gs.v80ue2

https://www.redcross.org.au/campaigns/disaster-relief-and-recovery-donate