Home ›› 11 Aug 2021 ›› Editorial
As the Western world emerged from the church-centered worldview of the medieval period, they relied on modern science as a way out of the centuries-old oppression of the Catholic church. In this period, which we call the Age of Enlightenment, they essentially replaced religion with science. Science was intended to be the religion of the modern world, and humans could become gods themselves.
On the subject of humanity's relation to nature, two different approaches came to the forefront in the philosophy of the Enlightenment. Both approaches aimed at acquiring the secrets of nature. However, the first approach urged humans to become a caretaker of nature, while the second approach claimed that nature should be controlled, seized, and subjugated by humans.
Even though both approaches have their own followers in the modern era, the latter approach has predominated the Western world for the last three centuries. With the rapid advance of science, industry and technology, nature has been put at humanity’s disposal. For the sake of economic growth and development, more production and consumption, nature has been put on its knees.
For two centuries, European powers exploited the world’s prosperity. Then the United States, and now China, have begun to take the lion’s share at humanity’s table. As environmental disasters have become more frequent than ever, the delicate balance of nature has been disrupted by an unprecedented degree of production and consumption. Although ecological awareness has emerged in Western countries, the ferocious rapacity of capitalism seems to be unstoppable.
During the last decade, people all around the world have suffered from consecutive floods, fires, and a constant increase in temperature, signaling the rising threat of environmental disasters for the future of the world.
From time to time, many Islamic thinkers such as Muhammad Iqbal or Hossein Nasr protested against capitalism’s obsession with development and growth. During their struggle against the US, Native Americans, too, predicted the dire consequences of overproduction and overconsumption. As a Native American famously declared, “when the last tree is cut down, the last fish eaten, the last stream poisoned, you will realize that you cannot eat money.”
One of the many pollutants found in wildfire smoke is particle pollution, which is a mix of very tiny solid and liquid particles suspended in air. How tiny? Many of the particles in wildfire smoke are no larger than one third the diameter of your hair. These particles are so small that they enter and lodge deep in the lungs.
Particle pollution triggers asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes—and can kill. Studies of children in California found that children who breathed the smoky air during wildfires had more coughing, wheezing, bronchitis, colds, and were more likely to have to go to the doctor or to the hospital for respiratory causes, especially from asthma.
Another threat from forest fire smoke is carbon monoxide(CO)—a colorless, odorless gas most common during the smoldering stages of a fire and in close proximity to the fire. Inhaling CO reduces oxygen delivery to the body's organs and tissues and can lead to headaches, nausea, dizziness and, in high concentrations, premature death.
Wildfires spread many other harmful emissions, including nitrogen oxides and many hazardous air pollutants. Meteorologists aren’t yet able to forecast wildfire outbreaks, but there are three conditions that must be present in order for a wildfire to burn. Firefighters refer to it as the fire triangle: fuel, oxygen, and a heat source. Four out of five wildfires are started by people, but dry weather, drought, and strong winds can create a recipe for the perfect disaster—which can transform a spark into a weeks- or months-long blaze that consumes tens of thousands of acres.
Another possible cause of forest fires is lightning. Scientists have found that every degree of global warming sets off a 12 percent bump in lightning activity. Since 1975 the number of fires ignited by lightning has increased between two and five percent.
Being one of the most precious lands of the world, forests along the Aegean coast and in the province of Antalya have been burning for a week. As nearly two hundred fires broke out in a short span of time, all the measures taken by the governments remain insufficient to put out the fires. While Siberia, Australia, and California suffer from similar environmental calamities, floods occurred in Germany, Turkey, and China. Climate change has caused higher spring and summer temperatures and earlier spring snow-melt, which typically cause soils to be drier for longer, increasing the likelihood of drought and a longer wildfire season. And once wildfires ignite—whether by lightning strikes or a cigarette—these hot, dry conditions will increase the likelihood that the fire will be more intense and long-burning.
Wildfires threaten lives directly, and wildfire smoke can affect us all. They spread air pollution not only nearby, but thousands of miles away—causing breathing difficulties in even healthy individuals, not to mention children, older adults and those with heart disease, diabetes, asthma, COPD and other lung diseases.
Daily Saba
