Smoke from multiple wildfires in Canada reached Norway this week, thousands of kilometers from the fires, the Norwegian Institute for Climate and Environmental Research (NILU) said Friday.
"Very low" concentrations of smoke particles have been measured since Monday, especially at the Birkenes station in the south of the country, researcher Nikolaos Evangeliou told AFP. Measurements have since varied depending on the intensity of the fires, the direction of the winds and precipitation. "We don't see a serious spike or a significant increase ... So we don't see an environmental problem (in Norway) or any serious health risk," he said.
Exceptional season
In Canada, the situation is considered exceptional by the authorities in terms of the number of hectares burned at this time of year. The country as a whole is experiencing an unprecedented year: about 2300 forest fires have been recorded and about 3.8 million hectares have been burned, a total well above the average of recent decades.
Read alsoFrom Alberta to New York, the spectacular images of the fires that set Canada ablaze and suffocate the United States
Southern Norway, like much of the rest of northern Europe, is also experiencing a more pronounced drought than usual. In the southeast of the country, not a drop of rain has fallen for 16 days and no precipitation is expected by meteorologists in the coming days. Any open fireplace has been banned since Thursday for a period of three weeks.
