Monday, 4 March 2019

News in brief - Monday 4th March

Deforestation in Europe
Large parts of Europe, particularly Poland, are deforesting huge areas of woodland in an effort to make energy from biomass rather than fossil fuels; although more environmentally friendly in some ways, this energy source will still contribute to carbon emissions and(perhaps more worryingly) will upset the ecological balance of some areas making it harder for forest to grow back

Tornadoes strike in Alabama, USA
A series of powerful tornadoes have swept through Lee County in Alabama, leaving a trail of devastation in their wake; wind speeds of over 165mph were recorded and at least 23 people are thought to have died

Wildfires in Victoria, Australia
Lightning strikes in Bunyip State Park have started a fire that has burnt more than 10,000 hectares of land; despite the cooler conditions, 2,000 firefights are working to control the blaze both at ground level and from the air with helicopters dropping water on the worst affected areas