-
- Greenfudge.org on Facebook
FUNDRAISING
We are currently fundraising to start our first real-live nature conservation project. Even $1 can be a big help!Add your green news
You must be logged in to submit a storyRelated Posts
Pants on fire: Arson and property development in Greece photo: Grace Trivino (Flickr CC)
A couple of weeks ago I posted about camping on the Greek island...
Extreme weather update: New landslide in China, Russian heat wave over, Pakistan aid starts
Two months of extreme heat in Russia will end after today according to Russian meteorologists, with rains expected...
Portugal and Spain battle wildfires
Russia isn’t the only part of Europe currently suffering from dangerous and destructive wildfires.
19 fires are burning in...
Video: Heat wave continues to cause drowning deaths in Russia
The heat wave punishing much of Europe has hit Russia especially hard. Desperate to find relief from record...
Heat wave in Russia causes 1,200 drowning deaths
In a piece of news that may sound bizarre to some, record-breaking temperatures in Russia are causing a...
Login
Weekly Poll
Tip of the Day
Home / Heat wave in Turkey and Greece causes wildfires
Heat wave in Turkey and Greece causes wildfires
Posted by Graham_Land in Climate Change, Nature, 23 Aug 2010
Moscow and other parts of Russia recently experienced welcome relief in the form of cool rains after a summer dominated by deadly record temperatures and wildfires.
Turkey and Greece, however, are in the midst of their own heat wave, which is resulting in forest fires causing evacuations in both countries.
Strong winds are now buffeting Turkey and Greece after a two week heatwave during which temperatures topped 39 Celsius.
–Euronews
For more on the story, including a short video report go to the following article from Euronews:
Forest fires hit Turkey and Greece after heatwave
Meanwhile, on the other side of the planet, Bolivia is struggling to deal with a huge forest fire problem, which has left most of the country blanketed in smoke.
From a BBC News report:
Almost 25,000 fires have destroyed about 1.5m hectares (3.7m acres) of land and more than 60 houses.
Fires are a normal part of farming practices in Bolivia, but dry conditions and strong winds this year have put the situation beyond the capacity of the South American nation’s resources. Bolivian president Evo Morales has appealed to neighboring Argentina and Brazil for assistance.
Additional resources:
Reuters video: Blazes scorch Bolivia
Tags: Bolivia, fires, forest, Greece, heat, turkey, wave, wildfires, winds
Other Greenfudge.org posts
Update: China’s Flood Death Toll Now at 377 and Expected to Rise
Heavy rains continue to fall in southern China, raising the death toll to 377 and it’s not likely to stop there. At least 142 people are still missing and more rain is still expected. Thus far, the flooding has caused nearly $11 billion in damages, forced the evacuation of 4.4 million people, and collapsed 368,000 homes. Although floods happen yearly in China, this year’s have been particularly heavy, spanning across 10 provinces and regions in the southeast, and it all comes...
Creature Feature: The Vaquita
This week’s Creature Feature actually comes as a request from one of our readers! While this particular animal does have enough sites and organizations already covering its plight, it’s still a critically endangered species that many don’t know of, or have forgotten. The Vaquita is a critically endangered species of porpoise, with numbers estimated between 100 and 300. When it travels incognito, you may recognize it as the Cochito, Gulf Porpoise, or even the Hafenschweinswal. The smallest of all porpoises, the...
Consumerism, greenwashing and the ‘bonfire of the environment’
Since the environment and appearing to be green are increasingly in vogue, yet consumerism is more rampant than ever, a curious corporate, consumer and governmental culture is emerging. It’s the culture of ‘lets not and say we did’. For example, let’s go on about cutting emissions, but then expand offshore drilling. Or let’s make our corporate logo a green flower and then have the worst environmental safety standards among all large oil companies. Let’s call ourselves the greenest government ever and then...
An Environmental Victory: Styrofoam can Finally be Recycled!
Styrofoam has been the bane of the earth and all types of environmentalists for decades. It’s durable, moisture-resistant, has multiple uses…and takes at least 5,000 years to biodegrade. Americans alone throw away at least 25 billion Styrofoam products per year; all of that is just taking up more and more landfill space. Now, there is finally some light at the end of the Styrofoam-packed tunnel. Dart Corporation—a manufacturer of Styrofoam products—is setting up bins across the US to collect Styrofoam. They...
Exporting obesity: The disease of the rich world
The wealthy countries of the West are exporting processed, unhealthy foods to the developing world – and with dire consequences. The shift towards unhealthy diets – heavy in processed foods, fat, sugar and salt – is not simply a result of an increase in wealth among growing middle classes in the developing world, but a concerted effort by large international corporations to inundate markets with unhealthy, non-locally sourced food. A UN report authored by Olivier de Schutter reveals how this spells economic...
Warming oceans: Species return to Atlantic after 800,000 years
Arctic ice melt due to warming temperatures is causing marine plankton to migrate from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic via Arctic waters. This may have huge consequences for marine ecosystems of which plankton form the basis. An EU-funded study, the CLAMER project, discovered that a species of phytoplankton called Neodenticula seminae has returned to the Atlantic Ocean, where it has not lived for 800,000 years. And it’s not just algae. Warming ocean temperatures are also causing animal plankton to migrate into...
Foot traffic to power energy generating pavements
UK-based Pavegen Systems Ltd. has designed a new product to harvest kinetic energy in high foot traffic environments. This is then converted into electricity which can be used for a variety of purposes such as powering pedestrian lighting, information displays, ticket machines and even bus stops. Dubbed as “Pavegen stone” the slabs are made from recycled materials and they come in different colors. The Pavegen slab glows when stepped on, indicating that the user has generated energy. The estimated life span...
Oil Leaking from Stranded Chinese Ship Causes Major Concern for Great Barrier Reef
Right now, a Chinese coal ship is stranded in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Oil is slowly leaking out of the ship into the reef, which may cause a lot of damage to large areas of the protected reef. The ship (Shen Neng I) belongs to the Shenzhen Energy Group—a subsidiary of COSCO (China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company). Last year, COSCO was tied to a spill in Norway and it was also linked to a 2007 spill in San Francisco Bay....
Rio+20: World’s biggest greenwash?
The UN women’s group doesn’t like it. The UN children’s group doesn’t like it. Greenpeace hates it. So do Oxfam and a coalition of NGO’s known as the High Seas Alliance. I’m talking about the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, aka Rio+20, taking place 20 years after the seminal Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The agreement draft is not legally binding (it was never planned to be) and apparently has no clearly defined goals or timetables to tackle...
European e-waste must be recycled
Minerals used in electronic devices such as mobile phones and laptops are becoming increasingly scarce. Despite this, large quantities are thrown into landfills when such high-tech products are considered obsolete, something that unfortunately occurs with increasing frequency (see Moore’s Law). The European Parliament is proposing stricter standards for the recycling of e-waste. From a Deutsche Welle report: The Parliament wants member countries to be collecting at least 85 percent of electronic waste by 2016. Depending on the type of device, it wants a...
View all articles




You can also log in to post a comment.