Man-Made Disasters | Disaster Rally

10 Catastrophic Man-Made Environmental Disasters

Human activity is responsible for some devastating attacks on the natural world. Many of these man made environmental disasters could have been avoided if not for human greed, negligence, and carelessness. Here are ten of the world’s worst man made environmental disasters, listed chronologically.

1. Nuclear Testing at Bikini Atoll

Operation Crossroads Baker — Image Source: Wikipedia

Bikini, or Pikinni, Atoll is an island group in the Marshall Islands chain. The man made environmental disasters on the ring of islands began in 1946 when the U.S. began testing nuclear weapons there. Twenty-three devices were exploded between 1946 and 1958 on and around the islands. As a result, 167 Marshallese residents of the islands were forced to relocate. Bikini Atoll is no longer suitable for human habitation as a result.

Residents of nearby Utrik Atoll suffered acute radiation sickness. So did the 23 fishermen and crew members aboard the Japanese vessel the Daigo Fukuryū Maru. The ship’s radio operator, Aikichi Kuboyama, died as a result. Wildlife including the atoll’s coral reef were severely affected, with the effects still being present as recently as 2017. Nurse sharks are still being born with mutations caused by exposure to radiation.

2. Minamata Disease

Old picture of Chisso Corporation, Japan, responsible for one of the greatest man made environmental disasters — Chisso Corporation (Image Source: CARI Infonet)

In 1956, residents of the town of Minamata in Japan began experiencing neurological symptoms of mercury poisoning. They were exposed to toxic levels of mercury from eating the fish out of Minamata Bay, which was contaminated by industrial pollution by the Chisso Corporation. To this day, Chisso Corporation makes compensation payments to the victims. More than 2,200 people died as a result of methylmercury contamination.

3. Love Canal

Love Canal, Niagara Falls, New York — Image Source: Pinterest

Love Canal was a planned community in Niagara Falls, New York. William T. Love, the town’s eponymous planner, fell into financial difficulties, and the canal was used as a landfill and for dumping industrial waste. In the early 1950s, the dump was closed. Around the same time, the town experienced an economic and population boom. Families moved in and began having children.

Residents had long complained about unusual smells, substances, and an oily black runoff present in their yards and fields around the town, especially around the canal. Unknowingly, residents were being exposed to toxic industrial runoff, including benzene, dioxin, PCBS, toluene, and chloroform. They suffered a greater than average number of miscarriages, birth defects, neurological conditions, and abnormal white blood cell counts that can be a precursor to leukemia.

On August 7, 1978, then-president Jimmy Carter declared the site a federal health emergency. A 1979 study showed the 33 percent of Love Canal residents suffered chromosomal damage, compared to about one percent of the U.S. population as a whole.

4. The Amoco Cadiz Oil Spill

On March 16, 1978, the oil tanker Amoco Cadiz hit a rock off the coast of Brittany, France. This caused the control room to flood and led to the sinking of the ship. The shipwreck resulted in the spilling of 1.6 million barrels of light crude oil and 4,000 tons of fuel oil spilling into the Atlantic Ocean. Although the Deepwater Horizon disaster released more oil, the Cadiz disaster resulted in the greatest loss of aquatic wildlife as a result of an oil spill in human history.

5. Bhopal Disaster

Bhopal Disaster, India — Image Source: theCHIVE

On December 2, 1984, an industrial accident at the Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant released methyl isocyanate into the air. It caused the worst industrial disaster in the world’s history. Between 2,200 and 3,700 were killed by the gas release, an additional 558,000 were injured, and 3,900 were permanently disabled. An estimated 8,000 people died within two weeks of the release of the gas, mostly from respiratory failure. Inadequate safety equipment contributed to the disaster.

Drinking water is contaminated since pesticides from the now-abandoned plant have seeped into it. It was estimated in 2014 that 120,000 people still live with health effects of the disaster.

6. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

This floating example of man made environmental disasters was discovered some time between 1985 and 1989. The currents of the North Pacific Gyre (a marine ecosystem) trap particles of marine debris that includes chemical sludge and pelagic plastics. These particles are so small they can be hard to detect with the naked eye and can’t be seen using satellite photography. Although this makes it difficult to estimate the size of the debris field, some researchers believe it may be as large as eight percent of the total area of the Pacific Ocean.

Scientists believe the origin of these plastics is littering and improper industrial waste disposal. This includes the disposal of nets and other gear used by the fishing industry. The effects of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch aren’t fully known. However, the particles that compose it are small enough to be ingested by marine wildlife which then enter the food chain. Byproducts of the breakdown of plastics include toxic molecules such as bisphenol A (BPA) and polystyrene derivatives.

7. Chernobyl Disaster

Danger sign at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant — Image Source: Pinterest

On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Pripyat, Ukraine (then part of the USSR) experienced an uncontrolled reaction incident, resulting in a steam explosion followed by a fire. Updrafts resulting from the fire released nuclear fission materials into the atmosphere. It contaminated the environment of the western USSR and parts of Europe.

The investigation revealed this man made environmental disaster was caused by design flaws at the plant and operator errors made during a shut-down safety test. Further errors were made in trying to contain the accident. Firefighters who arrived on scene weren’t told that they were entering the scene of a nuclear accident; they thought they were responding to an electrical fire. Nor was Pripyat evacuated immediately.

Two employees of the plant died immediately at the scene, 28 more of acute radiation sickness, and 14 more died of exposure to the radiation over the next decade. Four kilometers of forest died and the water system became contaminated. Furthermore, fish in the rivers were inedible for years afterward due to radioactive contamination. It is difficult to estimate how many people died as a result of the accident since there was a systematic cover-up by the Soviet Union. However, as many as 9,000 may have died from acute radiation sickness and long-term exposure to radioactivity. This makes the Chernobyl incident among the deadliest of man made environmental disasters.

8. The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound off the coast of Alaska — Image Source: Imgur

On March 24, 1989, an oil tanker ship named the Exxon Valdez struck the Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound off the coast of Alaska. The shipwreck caused more than 10.8 million gallons of crude oil to spill into the sound.

As many as 250,000 seabirds died as a result. Sea otters, river otters, bald eagles, salmon, herring, and orcas were some of the other species whose long-term health and survival rates were affected. Additionally, the 2-butoxyethanol used in the clean-up caused health problems for the clean-up crew.

An investigation determined the cause of the shipwreck to be an insufficient number of crew members, an overworked crew, and a steering error by the third mate. At that time, Exxon Shipping Company regularly overworked and undermanned its oil tankers, a recipe for man made environmental disasters.

9. Kuwaiti Oil Fires

Kuwaiti Oil Fires, a result of the first Persian Gulf War in 1991 — Image Source: Wikipedia

This man made environmental disaster was a result of the first Persian Gulf War in 1991. Iraqi military forces retreating from Kuwait, the country Iraq had unlawfully invaded, set fire to between 600 and 732 Kuwaiti oil wells, oil lakes, and trenches. This act of sabotage resulted in severely reduced air quality for the people and wildlife of Kuwait and the surrounding countries. More than 40 million tons of earth and sand were contaminated with oil and soot as a result of the largest oil spill in human history. Plant life was affected through 1995. Since oil from the spill continues to seep into the ground, human drinking water may continue to be affected in the future.

10. Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling unit on fire — Image Source: Wikipedia

The largest maritime oil spill in human history, this man made environmental disaster on April 20, 2010 killed 11 people and dumped 4.9 million barrels of crude oil in the Gulf of Mexico. Cost-cutting measures by the British Petroleum (BP) company that owned the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, the rig’s operator Transocean, and the contractor Halliburton led to neglect of equipment and unsafe working conditions. This resulted in an explosion and subsequent oil spill. BP officials pleaded guilty to 11 counts of manslaughter. The company was also temporarily banned from contracts with the U.S. government.

The Bottom Line

These disasters remind us that not only are human beings quite fragile, but our earth is fragile as well. Wildlife and water sources can easily become contaminated due to our activity. If we want everyone on our planet, human or otherwise, to live long, healthy lives, we’ll have to be better caretakers than this.

The 5 Nuclear Waste Disposal Methods

Nuclear energy is commonly used in areas around the world today because it is a cost-effective way to produce a considerable amount of energy necessary for basic functions. Some medical facilities also produce this type of waste. While there are several nuclear waste disposal methods used by countries around the world, the issue of disposing of this incredible amount of waste is a growing concern for a justified reason.

By understanding more about current nuclear waste disposal methods, you may be able to see where the issues lie with some of the disposal methods currently being used.

1. Waste Remains On-Site at Power Plants

nuclear waste being stored at THORP processing plant — THORP Fuel Storage (Image Source: World-Nuclear.org)

Altogether, approximately 2,000 to 2,300 tons of radioactive nuclear waste are generated at energy plants around the world. When you are exploring the various nuclear waste disposal methods available, it is important to note that the waste is typically described as being either high-level waste or used fuel waste.

This waste may be in a solid or liquid form, and there are also waste products with low or intermediate levels of radioactivity. One of the more common nuclear waste disposal methods available for the high-level waste is to simply store the waste on-site at the power plants. This is done when there simply is no other reasonable method available for dealing with highly toxic waste products.

Special chemicals are usually used to pull uranium fuel out of specialized rods at nuclear power plants. As the chemicals extract the uranium from the rods, toxic liquid waste is generated by the chemicals. In addition, used rods are another form of waste.

Approximately 29,000 tons of used rods are currently in the world, and many of these sit in cooling pools located on-site at the nuclear power plants. This is not a long-term solution for dealing with this waste, however. This is because the available space on-site at various nuclear power plants is very limited.

More than that, the radiation can seep into the liquid in the ponds, and this could potentially contaminate ground water. You can see that this type of disposal method for dealing with nuclear waste is simply not ideal.

2. Waste Is Buried in a Landfill

one of the most common nuclear waste disposal methods is to bury it in a landfill — Nevada Radioactive Waste Dump (Image Source: Emaze)

When you are looking at the many nuclear waste disposal methods, it is also important to note that some waste actually makes its way to landfills, and this may include landfills that are located close to your home. Low-level radiation waste is usually compacted tightly or otherwise burned.

After one of these methods is applied to the waste, it is usually transported to a landfill. It simply sits in the landfill along with other types of waste that finds its way to landfills. This creates some level of radioactivity at these landfills, and some people are concerned about how this waste is impacting the environment.

For example, some birds may consume waste products at landfills, and pollution can also enter the air and water supply through the landfills.

3. Waste Is Solidified and Buried at a Deeper Level

underground disposal of nuclear waste — Underground Nuclear Waste Disposal (Image Source: Flickr)

Some nuclear reactors also create an intermediate-level of waste that requires more specialized handling. For example, this type of reactor waste typically must be solidified before it can be dumped in a landfill. It most commonly is turned into bitumen or concrete.

This solid waste material is then taken to a landfill for disposal. Generally, it must be buried deeper in the landfill and requires special handling. Nonetheless, some level of toxic radiation can still seep into the environment as a result of this type of waste handling method.

4. Waste Is Sealed and Stored in Approved Locations

Another common option for nuclear waste disposal methods relates to storing the material in off-site and approved locations. There are several locations across the country and beyond that are licensed for storing this type of waste, but many people have issues with these facilities being located close to their home or workplace. After all, issues related to earthquakes and other factors can create a serious risk of radiation exposure.

There are various types of storage facilities in the United States to handle different types of nuclear waste. For example, a facility in Barnwell, SC accepts waste from nuclear reactors. An Andrews County, Texas facility accepts compact waste. There are also other facilities located in Utah and Washington.

These facilities typically use either horizontal or vertical storage containers, and these containers are usually located above ground. While steps are taken to keep them properly maintained and in good condition, the reality is that the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster issue caused by an earthquake and subsequent tsunami is a prime example for the reason for concern regarding nuclear waste and how it is handled.

5. The Controversial Space Disposal

Another method of disposal for nuclear waste is known as space disposal. With this type of method, the nuclear waste is solidified. After it has been solidified, it is launched into the earth’s orbit. Then, it is sent beyond the orbit. This option is rather expensive, but it solves the problem of an increasing amount of nuclear waste being stored on the planet.

When the waste has been permanently removed from the planet, natural disasters and other related issues are not a concern. However, some opponents of this type of plan are concerned about the possibility of the space vehicle or rocket that is being used to transport the waste potentially exploring en route. The effects of this type of disaster are unknown and worrisome.

Summing Up

Many people unfortunately assume that all of the waste being generated by nuclear activities worldwide is properly being disposed of. However, you can see that waste is not always eliminated at all. Instead, it is simply stored on-site or in an approved off-site location.

This means that much of toxic waste in the world is growing at a rapid pace rather than being eliminated it. This is a worrisome fact and we can only hope of discovering new methods of disposal soon.

Where Do Sinkholes Occur and How Do They Form?

Sinkholes are one of the many terrifying disasters of nature. Unpredictable and sometimes deadly, they seem to swallow homes and roads without discretion. You see devastating stories about them on the news all the time, but how much do you know about sinkholes? What exactly are they? Where do sinkholes occur? Is there anything you can do to protect yourself from them? Let’s find out!

What Are Sinkholes?

A sinkhole is a large depression in the ground that occurs as a result of underground dissolution and erosion of limestone and other carbonate rocks. Most of the time they actually form slowly, but some sinkholes appear suddenly and unexpectedly after a long process of erosion underground. Sinkholes have several alternate names, including cenote, swallet, and doline.

Where Do Sinkholes Occur?

Great Blue Hole sinkhole — The Great Blue Hole (Image Source: Flickr)

So, where do sinkholes occur? The answer is that they can and do appear all over the world; there are sinkholes on every continent and even under the ocean (the Great Blue Hole).

What Factors Make an Area Prone to Sinkholes?

Where do sinkholes occur within a region? There are a few factors that make a sinkhole more likely to develop. Sinkholes are most likely to occur in what is known as a karst landscape. A karst landscape is a stretch of terrain composed of large amounts of soluble minerals such as limestone. The land in Florida is mostly composed of limestone, which is why that state has many problems with sinkholes.

Where do sinkholes occur in the ocean? Just like on land, ocean sinkholes tend to occur in areas with a lot of soluble sedimentary rock. Some notable underwater karst landscapes are found off the coast of Belize, the Bahamas and the Yucatan Peninsula.

The deepest underwater sinkhole in the world, which is named Dragon Hole, is found in the South China Sea. In 2016, it was estimated to be 987 feet deep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dL3paQVbWc

The second-deepest underwater sinkhole is Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas, which is estimated to be 663 feet deep.

Oceanic sinkholes are often referred to as blue holes because they appear as a dark blue circle that contrasts with the lighter-colored water around them. Blue holes fascinate biologists because of the rare bacterial life forms that survive in their oxygenless depths.

How Do Sinkholes Form?

Sinkholes can form as a result of either natural or artificial processes or a combination of both. There are three types of nature-derived sinkholes: dissolution sinkholes, cover-subsidence sinkholes, and cover-collapse sinkholes.

Dissolution Sinkholes

The formation of dissolution sinkholes begins when acidic rainwater seeps through the ground and dissolves soluble rock (usually limestone) beneath the surface. This creates a gap in the sediment layers under the earth, weakening the foundation. The ground eventually collapses into the gap, resulting in a sinkhole. Though dissolution sinkholes are considered to be nature-derived, human pollution indirectly contributes to their formation by causing acid rain.

Cover-subsidence Sinkholes

Cover-subsidence sinkholes form much more slowly than other types of sinkholes. Like dissolution sinkholes, they mostly occur in limestone-rich karst landscapes. The difference is that cover-subsidence sinkholes involve sand sinking into the ground instead of acid rain. The sand siphons into cracks and gaps in the rock layers below. Over time, this forms a sinkhole in the ground. Where do these sinkholes occur? They mostly form in karst landscapes with sandy, granular soil on the surface.

Cover-collapse Sinkholes

Cover-collapse sinkholes appear rapidly. Where do these sinkholes occur? Whereas cover-subsidence sinkholes occur in sandy areas, the cover-collapse variety tends to show up in areas where there is copious clay in the topsoil. This type of sinkhole, like the others, begins with the dissolution of rock deep underground. In this case, the clay-rich topsoil holds out for a long time before collapsing. A huge gap appears beneath the surface, forming a sort of arch underground. When the arch collapses, the results are devastating.

Man-made Sinkholes

Sinkholes with man-made causes are most often the result of groundwater pumping, which can affect water drainage patterns deep beneath the soil. In 2013, a small sinkhole opened up in San Francisco because an aging sewer system exploded. A similar incident occurred in Florence, Italy in 2016 when an underground water pipe exploded and created a sinkhole. Above-ground construction can also pose a sinkhole hazard if the building materials place too much pressure on vulnerable tracts of land.

How Can You Protect Yourself from Sinkholes?

In areas that are known to be high-risk for sinkholes, professional geologists should be consulted before buildings are constructed. Buildings can sometimes be reinforced with special piers that are screwed into the ground to stabilize them. Another reinforcement technique is to use chemical grouting. This involves injecting certain chemicals into the sediment. The grouting fills gaps in the soil and strengthens it.

Sinkholes can be very difficult to predict. Signs tend to be subtle: plants dying due to loss of groundwater, development of new ponds or puddles, failure of windows to shut correctly, etc. If the land around your house starts to sink, it is recommended that you evacuate as quickly as possible and notify the building inspection department of your town. Insurance may cover damages caused by the sinkhole, especially in areas where sinkholes are a common occurrence.

Summing Up

To recap, a sinkhole is a depression that forms in the ground as a result of the dissolution of rocks under the earth’s surface. There are several different types of sinkholes, and they can appear both on land and under the ocean. They occur all over the world, but they tend to happen most often in karst landscapes.

Sinkholes can be slow-forming or sudden and come in a variety of sizes. Damages can be offset by consulting with geologists, reinforcing building foundations, and injecting grouting chemicals into the soil.

5 Chernobyl Disaster Facts and Present Situation

The use of nuclear power has been a point of contention for many years. Critics of the use of this energy often cite the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine as a prime example of why this type of energy should not be used. The Chernobyl nuclear power plant, located in Pripyat, exploded and emitted radioactive materials into the environment. This event ranks as one of the top catastrophic nuclear events in worldwide history. As well-known as this event is, there may be some Chernobyl disaster facts that you are not currently aware of.

1. 200 Tons of Radioactive Material Remain in Chernobyl

Let’s start with one of the Chernobyl disaster facts that are very much worrying to those who live near the power plant. Even after the Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion, the plant continued to remain in operation. In fact, the last reactor was not shut down until 2000, which is 14 years after the explosion took place. More than that, more than 200 tons of radioactive material are still located inside the power plant, and it may take as much as another 100 years before the power plant is completed decommissioned. Meanwhile, those who live within a very large radius around the facility continue to feel the effects of the nuclear waste material.

2. Far More than 31 Deaths Have Been Linked to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Incident

When you read media stories about the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster, you hear about the 31 individuals who died directly from the explosion and fire during the days the fire burned. These were workers at the plant as well as rescue workers who were the first to respond to the incident. However, the death toll actually far exceeds this number.

The radioactive material that entered the atmosphere has spread far and wide throughout the Soviet Union and surrounding countries. Shortly after the event, 50 emergency responders passed away from acute radiation syndrome. Some sources state that between 9,000 and 60,000 cases of thyroid cancer that have been reported may have been caused by this event. This is a difficult type of cancer to treat, and the total death toll related to this event could tally into the thousands or tens of thousands of people. Other sources state that as many as 90,000 cases of cancer may be related to this event.

swings and Ferris wheel near Chernobyl — Amusement park near Chernobyl (Image Source: YouTube)

3. The Worst Man-Made Natural Disaster

The International Nuclear Event Scale rates events based on how devastating and widespread damage is. The Chernobyl disaster is only one of two events that received the highest rating possible, which is a rating of seven. The other event was the Fukushima Daiichi event that took place in Japan in 2011. Both of these events leaked a substantial amount of deadly contamination into the environment. In addition, both have resulted in a significant decline in the interest of building new nuclear reactors in areas around the world. Nonetheless, nuclear sources continue to be used to generate power. It also continues to be a threat to the world population on all continents except for Australia and Antarctica.

4. The Soviet Union Did Not Receive the Bulk of Contamination

You might think that Soviets were the primary victims of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant event. However, this is not the case. It is true that tens of thousands of people were forced to evacuate from their homes while the fire burned. Furthermore, over 500,000 individuals were negatively impacted by the event. However, it is estimated that more than 70 percent of the radioactive contamination material impacted the neighboring country of Belarus.

In Belarus and other surrounding countries, it was common for doctors to advise pregnant women to abort their pregnancies because of the likelihood that the babies would be born with severe birth defects as a result of this event. It is not known how many abortions are related to the Chernobyl event. Many other women chose to avoid trying to get pregnant because of the event. Some sources estimate that more than five million people throughout the region were exposed to the high levels of radiation.

5. The Remaining Radioactive Material May Be at Risk

Last on our Chernobyl disaster facts list, here’s a worrying thought. The Chernobyl facility is in relatively poor condition. The remaining 200 tons of radioactive material at the power plant are located in a building known as the sarcophagus. This building is crumbling and in poor condition.

It is reported that the explosion and fire that took place in April 1986 dispersed more than 100 times the amount of radiation of both the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs used in World War II on Japan. Radioactive acid rain from the event fell as far away as Ireland. What’s more, an entire forest located closer to the nuclear facility turned red because of exposure to radiation. This forest is now appropriately known as the Red Forest. The impact on wildlife throughout the region is not accurately known.

Because additional radioactive material located in the deteriorating sarcophagus may be at risk, the global impact of this event may continue to grow if a leak occurs. Nonetheless, some residents have moved back into the affected area because of a few financial incentives offered by the Ukrainian government.

abandoned town of Pripyat — The ghost town of Pripyat (Image Source: Pinterest)

Summing Up

Hopefully, these Chernobyl disaster facts shed light on many questions you may have had. Many people are not aware of the incredible impact that the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster has had on so many lives in countries near and far. They are also not aware of the long-term impacts of radiation exposure as well as the continued risk that this facility presents. The unfortunate reality is that nuclear meltdown events that occurred in Pripyat and in Fukushima can occur elsewhere as well.

Knowing these distressing Chernobyl disaster facts, where do you stand when it comes to nuclear energy?

What Causes Wildfires And How To Prevent Them

Wildfires are a destructive force of nature that you don’t want to cross paths with. Luckily, there might be a chance to prevent some bursts by knowing what causes wildfires. This is what we’ll be focusing on in the continuation of this article alongside with some solutions.

What Is A Wildfire?

Source

Real wildfire isn’t green and able to burn on the surface of water and we should be grateful for that. We say this because they cause enough damage as it is. Wildfires aren’t anything but uncontrollable blazes that have started to spread out on large areas of vegetation. These fires can last for several days straight and they scorch any kind of organic matter in their path.

In the United States, we can talk about approximately 100,000 wildfires starting every year. On an average, millions of acres of land get lost amid the blazes.

For narrower areas, wildfires that mostly affect one particular type of vegetation have their own specific names. We can have forest fires, grass fires, peat fires, or bush fires depending on which type of flora is affected most.

What Causes Wildfires?

Unfortunately, wildfire causes are many and plenty. It doesn’t help that forests and patches with dry vegetation are essentially danger zones. It’s worth noting that wildfires tend to start, most of the time, in areas with dry and hot climates.

Human Actions

Human intervention is what causes wildfires most frequently in the USA. Most of the time it’s because of our indirect actions, though there are some situations where the fire starts with intention. Find below a list detailing what causes wildfires at the hand of any of us.

#1 Campfires

Camping is loads of fun and strumming your guitar while roasting some marshmallows above a campfire can often make the whole experience all the more charming. However, unattended campfires are guaranteed wildfire hazards.

In order to avoid the possible outcomes of a campfire, your first step is ensuring that you’re setting up your tent in a relatively safe area. Igniting a blaze in the heart of the forest with logs and trees all around drastically increases the risk of a wildfire explosion. Moreover, don’t sleep with your fire still lit unless there is someone to watch over it. And don’t forget to put it out when you leave!

#2 Burnings

Many people burn debris and yard junk in order to get rid of it. It’s legal to do so, which should theoretically imply that it’s not dangerous. Unfortunately, at the end of the day, fire is still fire and it can easily get out of hand. Tricky winds may make it bigger and more difficult to keep under control.

If you really have to burn your debris, there isn’t really any way to avoid doing so. You can try to lower the risks of an inferno breaking out by always keeping a source of water nearby. Moreover, it would do to inspect your chosen area beforehand and see that it’s not particularly windy.

#3 Cigarettes

We’ve heard that cigarettes are bad in every possible way. They’re bad for your own health, for the health of people around you, and they’re harmful to the environment as well. When carelessly tossing a still lit cigarette on the ground, you’re turning this harm into a literal business.

Scratch the fact that it’s littering, a cigarette not properly put out can easily develop into a disastrous forest fire.

#4 Fireworks

Fireworks should only be handled by people who know what they’re doing, period. They can cause some serious injuries when not kept under control. And in even worse scenarios, a firework can be what causes wildfires. Always keep your firework shows in open areas with no trees, twigs, figs, bushes, and whatnot around you. Forest fireworks are just a bad idea all around.

#5 Arson

An arsonist sets fire to property, vehicles, and various other things with the express intention of causing damage. Cases of arson amount to approximately 30% of what causes wildfires. There are some people who willingly set fire to their own property and belongings in order to receive damage compensation. We can’t say this applies to forests since they’re public property, so for now we’ll just blame it all on a little bit of… mental instability.

Natural Causes

A human’s action isn’t the only factor that causes wildfires. Mother Nature has a say in all of this as well and, unfortunately, she doesn’t shy away from igniting whole acres of vegetation.

Lightning

Lightning is an extremely dangerous natural phenomenon, but it’s especially dangerous for forests. There is a particular type called “hot lightning” which is known to be the biggest fire-starter whenever a thunderstorm breaks out. Hot lightning can cause sparks that will set its vicinity ablaze, with the flame continuing to burn for a long time and being very difficult to put out.

Heat

During times of extremely arid and hot summer, the sheer power of the heat is enough to start wildfires. This happened in recent times both in the United States and other areas around the world, most notably in Australia.

Wildfire Prevention Solutions

Respect the law. There are specific regulations which refer to the act of burning objects and they also state which substances you are and aren’t allowed to burn. If one particular thing is banned, chances are this is because it’s easily flammable and can accidentally evolve into a wildfire.
Watch weather forecasts before you decide to start any fires, whether it’s burning junk or going camping. Avoid days that are particularly windy and that may pose obstacles in keeping the blaze under control.
Contain your fires. The best example for that is a well-built campfire, which technically doesn’t allow the fire to spread from its source – not incredibly fast, at least. Don’t ever assume that “it won’t happen to you.” Always think one step ahead and ensure you’d be able to easily put out a fire should things go out of hand.