Plant aspen trees, avoid eucalyptus, and have a word with your lazy neighbour if you want to protect your property against wildfires, gardeners have been warned, as the UK faces an increasing risk of blazes from global heating. So far this year, there have been 134 wildfires in the UK, burning more than 29,000ha of land. In the longer term, however, the UK was likely to be in for more wildfires because of the climate crisis, experts said. Smith said judging the number and extent of UK wildfires is hard, because a clear and consistent satellite record is only available for the last decade, and previous records were patchy and inconsistent. Wildfires can cause sudden spikes in air pollution from particulate matter, presenting a serious health hazard many miles away from the fires.

Source: The Guardian June 22, 2019 04:52 UTC