Alarm level red for forests: droughts and forest fire risk increase!

Alarm level red for forests: droughts and forest fire risk increase!

Norddeutschland, Deutschland - The spring 2023 in Germany was characterized by a pronounced drought. In many regions, the rainfall in winter, especially in February, only fell on about half of the usual quantity. These weather conditions meant that the upper floors in northern and north-east Germany as well as in Saarland, Rhineland-Palatinate, Northern Bavaria and South Thuringia in May were more dry. Experts refer to alarming similarities to the drought in 2022, despite a later wet weather, which could better supply deeper layers of the soil from mid -2023 to the end of 2024. These layers could be an important water source for autumn devices such as rapeseed and winter cereals, which is endangered by the current dryness, such as Dewezet.de reported.

The scientist Katrin Drastig from the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Technology warned of a nationwide precipitation deficit in spring 2025. The forecasts for the summer remain unclear, which increases the concern due to climate models that indicate worrying trends. It is particularly critical that spring dryness for young plants could be more serious than the dryness in midsummer. The persistent drought and heat also lead to an increased risk of forest fire, similar to in 2018, 2019 and 2022.

forest fire risk and prevention measures

In order to quantify the risk of forest fire, the German Weather Service (DWD) creates a risk of forest fire, which is based on data from 500 weather stations. Almost all forest fires in Germany are caused by human carelessness. This static information is alarming in view of the long -term damage caused by forest fires. The reforestation after a fire can take decades of how to observe in the past.

In order to minimize the risk of forest fires, the Federal Environment Agency recommends converting needle tree monocultures into multi-layered mixed forests. Johann Goldammer, an expert in forest management, points out that central measures to promote biodiversity and carbon binding can also result in lower management of the forests. This can lead to more dead wood that serves as a potential fuel, but has a positive effect on the storage of water and carbon.

climate change and extreme weather events

According to the DWD, the most sunshine was rich in 2022 and one of the warmest years since the beginning of weather records in Germany. The annual temperature was 10.5 ° C and was 2.3 K higher than the average from 1961 to 1990. Over the past nine years, five years have had an annual temperature of 10 ° C. These weather conditions led to a significant decrease in the frost days and an increased number of summer days, which further tightened the susceptibility to dryness and thus for forest fires, such as dwd.de determined.

In 2022, Germany experienced 15 % less with a rainfall of 670 mm than in many years of average. The drought not only led to the loss of earnings in agriculture, but also to an increase in forest fires, especially in Saxony and Brandenburg. September 2022 was the most precipitated month with 100 mm, which was not sufficient to compensate for the deficits perceived as alarming.