Media contributions
1Media contributions
Title BBC Radio 5 Live - UK Wildfires 2025 Degree of recognition National Media name/outlet BBC Radio 5 Live Media type Radio Duration/Length/Size 6 minutes [18:41 - 18:47] Country/Territory United Kingdom Date 7/04/25 Description Dr Gail Millin-Chalabi an Earth Observation Scientist at the UoM was interviewed by Chris Warburton and was asked how unusual are wildfires at this time of year? Gail confirmed that the country does experience wildfires in March and April. However, the number of wildfires that are taking place simultaneously across the country is unusual. The Copernicus European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS) is indicating that 2025 is becoming a significant wildfire year. In contrast it was the wettest April this time last year. Previous significant wildfire years for the UK of greater than 17,000 hectares of burned area occurred in 2011, 2018, 2019 and 2022. Chris Warburton asked how likely is this due to climate change? Certainly climate change has a part to play here but the point of ignition for wildfires in the UK is due to arson and accidential ignition. So it is a combination of these two factors. The vegetation phenology is also a key driver for fire occurrence in the UK and right now the Fuel Moisture Content (FMC) of vegetation is very low and has not yet greened up for the late spring and early summer which means there is a lot of dry parched vegetation which can fuel fires. Chris thanked Gail for her time. Producer/Author Chris Warburton and Clare McDonnell URL https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live/bbc_radio_five_live Persons Gail Millin-Chalabi
Research Beacons, Institutes and Platforms
- Manchester Environmental Research Institute
Keywords
- Wildfires
- climate change
- Arson
- Accidental ignition
- Fuel Moisture Content
- EFFIS