Paraná Delta Fires

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The view of the fires from an apartment balcony (@licnutmarie on twitter)

Moesha Aplicano-Burnham, Managing Editor

In Argentina, in the Paraná Delta there are multiple fires. The US media has done very little to cover and bring awareness to these dangerous fires. Argentina is not new to experiencing fires, however this is the worst and most out of control fire season they have seen in at least a decade. Much like most fire seasons they’ve experienced, some of the fires in the Paraná Delta could have been caused deliberately. Although farmers burning weeds or other things on their property are likely not to blame, it could be a probable cause. It’s likely that the drought and unusually high temperatures have caused these fires to become uncontrollable. “Once a fire reaches that scale, it becomes virtually impossible to stop.” said Leonel Mingo, a spokesperson for Greenpeace Argentina in response to the Guardian. 

There have been at least 27,817 fires detected by NASA satellites. Winds have carried the smoke plumes from these fires all the way to Buenos Aires and Rosario, which poses a serious threat to the air quality and human health. The air has been said to be unbreathable for weeks at a time. People with asthma or other respiratory issues are in a lot of danger in these high risk environments. But humans are not the only species that will be affected by the fires. The  Paraná Delta is home to a large and diverse ecosystem, and currently that’s a major concern for some people. Environmentalists have been campaigning for laws to help protect the wetland ecosystems, which includes the Paraná Delta. The Paraná Delta includes a lot of animals such as the capybara, wildcats, and other birds, as well as reptiles and amphibians. The effects of this fire have been serious and deadly to multiple species, including humans. The fact that there is such little media coverage of these detrimental fires is incredibly concerning.