A different fire












In the summer of 2019-2020, about 7 million hectares of land burned in Australia, an area just smaller than Belgium. This has resulted in the deaths of an estimated billion animals, not including those lost afterwards due to injury, lack of food, water, and shelter, and increased vulnerability to predators. Not including insects and the microorganisms that make the ecosystem functional.

I hope that this comic helps to illustrate some of the ways in which climate change affects the fire landscape: it increases the growth of biomass, reduces the moisture in the fuel both above and below ground, and contributes to weather extremes. These are the factors which, when combined, create unprecedented megafires. I urge you to pressure companies, decision makers, family, and friends to take responsibility in the ongoing climate emergency.
Mark