In February 2024, a heat wave continued for several days in the Chilean coastal city of Viña del Mar. The landscape, already affected by the El Niño-supercharged the droughtwas baked dry. So, when wildfires break out, they tear through densely populated and mountainous terrain. In just a few days, the wildfires—the deadliest in Chilean history—burned 71,000 acres and At least 134 people were killed.
Devastating wildfires like this are happening Increasingly common. The climate is changing in part To blame – when Research Scientists have found that both El Niño and climate change have contributed to the intense wildfires in Chile in recent years Disagree Whether climate change had a statistically significant effect on this particular February fire. But the Chilean wildfires also underscore another ominous dynamic: the grasses, shrubs, and trees that humans have introduced into new ecosystems. fire events and frequency.
For more than five decades in central Chile, timber companies have transformed natural forests into homogeneous, sprawling plantations of non-native eucalyptus and Monterey pine that thrive in the country’s Mediterranean climate. These plants contain an oily resin that makes them particularly flammable, but combined with hot and dry conditions caused by climate change, they can become explosive, said Montana State University assistant professor Dave McWethy.
Our relationship with such non-native species is fraught. We enable the spread of species by purposefully transporting them to landscapes that previously did not belong to them. Take English ivy, a popular choice for stabilizing soil as an ornamental plant. Or the Norway maple, introduced to the East Coast of the United States in 1756, quickly became popular for the shade it provided. In the process, such non-dominant native ecosystems and native species can be displaced, disrupted agricultureor dispatch disease. Once a critter or plant is introduced, either accidentally or on purpose, it can quickly spread and outrun efforts to capture them at checkpoints or, as in the case of Florida’s state-sponsored “rodeos” for the species. the pythonKill them.
A Report The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) estimates that an estimated 3,500 geographically invasive plants and animals worldwide cost the global economy $423 billion annually.
Climate change is also shuffling the ecological deck: As Vox reports, ecologists expect climate change to create “range-shifting” or “climate-tracking” species that can survive warmer temperatures. Perhaps some of these species will be more fire-prone. “Fires are going to get worse in areas that are not used to fire because of invasive species,” said Anibal Pouchard, co-author of the IPBES report and professor at the University of Concepcion and director of the Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity. in chile
Such trends are also burning wildfires in unexpected places in the United States. For example, in 2023, a wildfire — fueled by guinea grass, mulberry grass and buffalo grass — killed at least 101 people on Maui.
According to Research Published in Journal PNASEight species of nonnative grasses are increasing fire incidence in the United States by between 27 and 230 percent.
This means that, due to the spread of nonnative species, millions of people in the United States will be affected by frequent wildfires and the unhealthy smoke they produce. Invasive grasses are altering historic fire activity and behavior at locations across the United States, research shows. This includes people living in the drier West (especially the Great Basin and Southwest) but living in more humid parts of the country, especially people living near the temperate deciduous forests of the eastern United States and the pine savanna ecoregions from the Mid-South. Carolina to central Florida.
Non-native grasses at risk of wildfires in the United States
While no single factor causes large fires by themselves, non-native grasses have played a more important role in recent decades — especially in low-elevation areas without historically much fire, said Seth Munson, an ecologist at the Southwest Biological Center. Flagstaff, Arizona.
The annual invasive grass cheatgrass, known for its hairy top, is one found approx 50-70 million acres nationwide, mostly in the Great Basin states. Lands with at least 15 percent cheatgrass were twice as likely and four times more likely to be burned multiple times than those with less grass abundance. Researchers University of Massachusetts Amherst, University of Idaho and University of Colorado.
According to the latest data, eight of the largest wildfires on record in the Great Basin have occurred since 2010. These include Nevada’s Martin Fire, which burned more than 435,000 acres in 2018, and destruction Large swaths of pasture for cattle and habitat for federally protected sage grouse.
Another invasive grass, cogongrass Thrives throughout Florida and the Gulf States, encroaching on traditional pine forests. These landscapes are already burning, with drastic human consequences. Wildfires in northwest Florida have burned homes, prompted the evacuation of more than a thousand people and cost millions of dollars in recent years.
The wildfires, the largest in Texas state history, have recently damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes, killed at least two people and thousands of cattle. hundreds of In 2023, wildfires in Louisiana also killed two people. Bufflegrass is taking root throughout Arizona’s Sonoran Desert and Red Brom spreading to the Mojave and other deserts.
Highly flammable Tamarind bush Rooted in dense stands near streams in the western United States, and Eucalyptus — One of the primary invasive plants blamed for Chile’s recent wildfires, as well as worsening wildfires Portugal – Increases wildfire risk in California.
What can be done?
Limiting the introduction of non-native plants, when possible, addresses the root of the problem. But many invasive species already have a foothold somewhere nearby. In that case, early detection of invasive species, either through satellite imagery or by people on the ground, is the best way to stop invasives with various removal techniques, be it herbicides or otherwise, in an attempt to contain them to some extent.
Federal agencies across the country, like the one Munson works with, as well as states, tribes, nonprofits and others, are already monitoring the movement of invasive species across the landscape and trying to manage them as they inevitably spread. Work is also underway to help native plants re-establish quickly after fire, giving them a chance against invasive angling for the same open space.
You can do your part by finding out what non-native plants are in your area, especially those that increase wildfire risk. And if you want to beautify your home’s landscaping, don’t plant them; Consider a native option instead.
