Report: Climate change worsened Indonesia wildfires - NHKニュース

Researchers say climate change is causing more frequent extreme weather events around the world, including the recent severe wildfires in Indonesia.

The international research group World Weather Attribution released a report on Thursday.

It says scientists from Indonesia, the US and three European countries found that human-induced climate change led to a significant increase in temperatures, or around 1.6 degrees Celsius, across Indonesia during the fire season.

It also points out that in addition to climate change, the El Nino phenomenon this year reduced rainfall in Indonesia, making the air extremely dry.

The report raises concerns about health risks caused by the fires and their impact on the natural environment. Heavy smoke produced severe air pollution, contributing to hundreds of thousands of cases of respiratory infection. Habitats of the endangered orangutan were also damaged.

The report also says the conditions that trigger the wildfires are increasingly predictable, creating an opportunity for proactive risk reduction steps. These include peatland restoration, protecting forest areas and reducing deforestation.