Arctic wildfires pose new threat to planet, report finds

‘Zombie fires’ in far north are having a harmful effect on global climate

Firefighters tackle a blaze in northern Russia (via REUTERS)

Arctic wildfires are not only bigger than ever before; they are also igniting more often and burning in an entirely different way, according to a new report.

Siberia’s fire season started two months early this year. Deep inside the Suzunsky pine forest, in the Novosibirsk region, volunteer firefighters are struggling to extinguish blazes that began from dry peat smouldering underground.  

These so-called “zombie fires”, which can survive autumn rain and freezing winters, have been identified as one of the features now shaping the Arctic, with potential consequences for the regional landscape and the global climate.