London, June 1, (dpa/GNA) – The northern hemisphere was exceptionally affected by forest fires this spring, according to a report published by the EU atmospheric service Copernicus on Thursday.
According to the report, record emissions were recorded in several regions, and the fires started very early this year.
Since March 23, Copernicus scientists have been able to record significant fire activity in various regions of Spain, it said.
Valencia was particularly affected, it said. As a result, record emission levels were recorded in Spain in May, which had previously only been registered in 2012.
The risk of forest fires was exacerbated “by the high temperatures and drought that hit the continent last winter,” it added.
Fires were also more severe than average in Canada, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and some neighbouring regions of Russia.
In Canada, according to the report, one of the highest emission levels ever recorded was recorded in May. The province of Saskatchewan was hit particularly hard.
The previous emissions record for this region was two megatons in May, but this year it was exceeded by more than 10 times (23 megatons).
Record fire emissions were also set in the provinces of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and Nova Scotia.
The Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service is one of several components of the European Union’s Copernicus programme.
It provides data derived from satellite imagery on the atmosphere, oceans, land, climate change, security and energy, among other areas.
GNA