Hot weather in Europe causes ozone pollution to harmful levels

Europe's atmospheric watchdog warned that the risk of wildfires was on the rise, with a large part of Western Europe at 'high fire risk' while some areas were at 'very high fire risk'.

Europe's atmospheric monitoring agency (Copernicus) warned on July 19 that the continent's heat was polluting the ozone layer so much that it was harmful to humans, adding that large areas Western Europe is also facing a very high risk of forest fires.

Children cool off by a fountain in Trocadero as temperatures are warned to reach 39 degrees in Paris (France), June 16, 2022.

The Copernicus announcement said: 'Flammable dry climate conditions and extreme heat are increasing the risk of wildfires'. Copernicus' emergency management department warned large parts of Western Europe were at 'high fire risk', with some areas at 'very high fire risk'.

According to Copernicus, this heat wave also caused the ground ozone index to rise. Unlike ozone in the middle layer of the atmosphere, which has a protective effect on the Earth, ground-level ozone is a major greenhouse gas and is a component in urban smog, which is harmful to human health. It also makes plants unable to photosynthesize.

Copernicus senior scientist Mark Parrington said: 'The potential impacts of high levels of ozone pollution on human health could be enormous, causing respiratory and cardiovascular disease. According to him, a high ground level of ozone can cause sore throats, coughs, headaches and increase the risk of asthma.

Ozone is created when emissions from fossil fuels and other types of man-made pollutants react in the presence of sunlight. So, Copernicus says, reducing emissions from these pollutants 'plays an important role'.

Scientists have detected 'very high levels of ground-level ozone pollution' in western and southern Europe, particularly on the Iberian peninsula and parts of northern Italy. According to Copernicus, the day's peak ground-level ozone, which usually peaks in the middle of the day, has reached health-damaging levels in Portugal, Spain and Italy.

Firefighters try to control forest fires caused by heat in Gironde, southwestern France, on July 17.

Scientists warn that while the situation is likely to be less severe in the Iberian peninsula, very high ground-level ozone levels are being recorded in parts of northern and western Europe as temperatures rise. Ozone concentrations in these areas are forecast to peak in the next few days, before they can ease.

Copernicus said total CO2 emissions from forest fires in Spain in July were at their highest level since 2003. For its part, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) estimates ozone pollution. causes about 1 million deaths each year.

Besides, ozone also poses a major concern for agricultural regions and food security. In January 2022, researchers estimated that persistently high levels of ozone pollution in Asia cost China, Japan, and South Korea about $63 billion a year in lost crops of rice, wheat, and rice. Corn.