A history of wildfires in Ireland (1850-2020) and its implications for contemporary climate change adaptation

Keywords: Hazard; climate change; adaptation; wildfire; history; Ireland
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Monday
Session Start / End Time: 2/28/2022 02:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/28/2022 03:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 16

Abstract

The importance of historically informed research in the fields of natural hazards, disaster risk reduction, and climate change adaptation has been increasingly recognized in recent years. Scholars have used a variety of archival sources to examine how improved understandings of past hazards and disasters can be used to contextualize current risks, exposures and vulnerabilities. This presentation outlines ongoing research to construct a historical record of wildfires in Ireland from 1850 to 2020 through an examination of newspaper archives. Wildfires represent an often overlooked, neglected and understudied hazard in Ireland and northwestern Europe, where research and policy have tended to focus on more predominant hazards such as floods and windstorms. The frequency, spatial distribution, and causes of uncontrolled wildfires in Ireland remain understudied. This research reveals that wildfires have been a recurring hazard in Ireland for well over a century. Throughout this time period local communities have engaged with wildfire hazards in a variety of ways. A range of strategies have been employed both to reduce the frequency of fires events and to manage those that did occur. These strategies have evolved through time in association with social, cultural, economic and political changes. This history of complex human-environment interactions can offer important lessons for contemporary adaptation.