Bloggers link Europe wildfires to famine conspiracy theories

Europe’s extensive wildfires have fueled conspiracy theories claiming that forests and fields are being deliberately burned to cause food shortages and famine, LSM’s Re:Check fact-checking project reported.

Wildfires broke out across much of Europe in July. Tens and hundreds of thousands of hectares have burned in Spain, France and Italy, while more than 320,000 people have been forced to leave their homes. The fires have also caused air pollution that is likely to have long-term effects on local residents’ health.

One pro-Kremlin blogger claimed that people were gradually being prepared for an inevitable famine because of events in Italy and France.

Social media users have also shared videos that supposedly show people deliberately setting forests on fire. In one video, a land manager rides an all-terrain vehicle and suddenly ignites undergrowth. The accompanying post claimed, without evidence, that the Spanish Civil Guard was starting the fires shown in the footage.

Some wildfires in Europe were deliberately started this year. For example, a 23-year-old man has been accused of starting 10 fires in southeastern France. In Italy, arson is sometimes used as a tactic to reduce the value of land so it can later be bought more cheaply.

However, there is no basis for claiming that the fires are part of an organised effort to create a food crisis.

Wildfires have been particularly extensive this year because of global warming, which scientists have long warned is causing more frequent periods of extreme drought, heat and precipitation. In western and southern Europe, heavy rain alternated with long dry periods. Downpours encouraged plant growth, but the vegetation dried out during the prolonged droughts and became highly flammable.