Unprecedented UK heatwave harmonised drivers of fuel moisture creating extreme temperate wildfire risk.

ABSTRACT: Climate change is resulting in more extreme fire weather during major heatwaves. Across temperate Europe, shrub landscapes dominate the area burned, with the moisture content of fuels during these events determining the threat posed. Current controls on the moisture content of temperate fuel constituents and their response to future extreme heatwaves are not known. We took field measurements of live and dead heather (Calluna vulgaris) and organic soil moisture content across the UK over 3 years, including an intensive sampling campaign during the July 2022 heatwave. Here, we show that the fuel moisture content of live fuel is associated significantly with phenological variables, dead fuel only with weather variables, whilst organic-rich ground fuels are more associated with landscap

SUBMITTER: Ivison K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12401727 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature