Almost a quarter of a million square miles of forest have been destroyed as fires rage out of control across central and southern Chile

SÃO PAULO, 3 February, 2017 – Chile is fighting the worst wildfires in its history. Government officials blame both climate change and human action for the blazes. A decade-long drought has left the South American country tinder-dry and, together with higher than average temperatures, made it easy for the fires to spread…In the last few decades, closely planted eucalyptus and pine plantations have covered much of what was previously farmland or native forest. The native forests, with their undergrowth and biodiversity, enjoy much higher humidity, but the commercial forests tend to be dry.

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