I feel I must share this with you all because it is important the world hears...
My homeland is hidden gem. It contains some of the most important natural reserves in Europe. It is in the north of Spain and benefits from a microclimate fostered by a mountain range that keeps the rain in. 40% has been deemed 'natural reserve', and UNESCO declared Redes, Somiedo, Muniellos and the Picos de Europa natural parks 'Biosphere Reserve' in the early 2000s believing them to be 'patrimony of the earth'.
More specifically Muniellos for example, is remarkable from the biological stand point for its rich forests as it is home to what is the largest and probably the best conserved Oak forest in Western Europe. It includes almost virgin communities of flora and fauna that in the past were dominant in most of the Cantabrian Cordillera. And although hard to observe because of the dense vegetation, large species of Atlantic European fauna, now extinct in most of the continent, live in the Biosphere Reserve, such as the Brown Bear and the Wolf which feeds on the abundant Wild Boar, Deer and Chamois. Birds are represented by over one hundred species, among them the rare Western Capercaillie. The biodiversity and survival of these, once common species, in such a developed part of the world is remarkable.
So that is the positive in this story, hope you are ready for the negative...
Now, this is what Muniellos looks like RIGHT NOW.
El parque de Muniellos (Asturias) antes y durante el incendio de anoche... #ArdeAsturies. La mayor reserva de robles de #España en peligro 😡 pic.twitter.com/UsKLjlmrdr
— David Fdez. Tovar () 16 October 2017
There was recent confirmation from the forest rangers that the areas used by 200 brown bears for mating and which was currently being frequented by the bear population to access the nuts from the ancient oaks was in flames. Some local residents have reported hearing the bears wuffing when surrounded by the fire. In Galicia and Asturias alone there are more than 150 focal points of fire reported at present while Portugal has seen devastation with more than 500. Dozens dead and thousands of hectares of forest and land burnt to the ground. The scale of the problem is so large that some coastal cities, 100km away, found smoke and particles had travelled to them with the high winds, and in Gijón for example, it was still dark at 10am.
Now some of you might say, 'what's the great deal? there have been worse fires elsewhere'
... and I get where you are coming from but there is something you might not know. Apart from the obvious culprits of climate change, high temperatures and high winds, there is another factor to take into account.
In Spain in 2015 the ruling right wing government approved a law that made burnt land that was previously exempt from development for 30 years after the fire, fair game for private persons and developers straight away. Since this happened several forest fires have broken in Spain that have endangered world renouned protected spaces such as Doñana. Indeed there is already evidence of a 'high percentage' of fires being the result of arson, and while there might have been a role played by weather and climate, people have seen this as the opportunity to clear some land and make some money.
This is, in my opinion, the worst aspect of humanity. We keep destroying that which sustains us, the biodeversity that gives us our means to survive to chase money, profit, wealth. I am beyond heart broken that such actions are seen as 'worth it', and that people fail to see the importance of protecting the biodiversity within the natural world.
My question to you is this.
What do you think needs to happen for the majority of the population to wake up to the realities of climate change and abuse of the planet for profit motive?
Seriously, would love to hear what you think we can do.
IMAGE SOURCES
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 15, GIF
