Forest fires in Siberia have doubled and become uncontrollable as Russian troops, who usually tackle them, are redeployed to Ukraine to take part in the war, The Independent reports.
Jessica McCarthy, a climate researcher at the University of Miami in Ohio, told Axios: "The biggest fires often require military planes, but it is doubtful that Russia will have them even in the summer if the war continues.
"So, either the fires will be bigger... or these planes and personnel will be taken from the western front and brought to Siberia," she said.
Greenpeace in Russia said that the current area of forest fires in the country is twice as large as in April 2021.
Large-scale fires are becoming more frequent in the region from spring to autumn. Because they emit huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the Arctic atmosphere, they are a major cause of climate change. Scientists have repeatedly stated that they need to be extinguished as soon as possible. Fires are thawing the permafrost, which emits carbon dioxide and methane.
Forest fires in Siberia have erupted in mid-April this year. Smoke from them enveloped Novosibirsk, Omsk and Krasnoyarsk cities, and a special fire regime was introduced in 14 regions of Russia.