Wildfire Warning: New Research Highlights the Dangers of Unmanaged Peat Fires

Rob Beeson
2 hours ago
3 min read

✅ KEY TAKEAWAY: This research confirms that preventing uncontrolled wildfires through active management is the most effective way to protect our peatlands, our air quality, and our rural communities.

A new scientific study offers a stark reminder of why wildfire prevention is the cornerstone of responsible moorland management.

As custodians of some of the UK’s most precious landscapes, members of the Moorland Association understand that peatlands are not just scenic backdrops for our rural communities - they are vital carbon stores and habitats.

A recently published paper, PM2.5 and CO Concentrations from Peatland Forest Fires 2023 provides a sobering look at what happens when peatlands succumb to uncontrolled wildfires.

While the research focuses on tropical peatlands in Indonesia during the dry season of 2023, the lessons for UK moorlands are universally relevant: unmanaged peat fires are an environmental and public health disaster.

The Study: Measuring the Smoke

The researchers monitored air quality in Central Kalimantan during the severe 2023 wildfire season. They focused on two deadly by-products of burning peat:

PM2.5: Microscopic particles that can penetrate deep into human lungs.
Carbon Monoxide (CO): A poisonous gas released when burning occurs with low oxygen (smouldering), which is typical of deep peat fires.

The team compared air quality during the rainy season (when the peat was wet and safe) versus the dry season (when wildfires took hold).

Key Findings

The results were alarming. The study found that during the wildfire season, air pollution levels skyrocketed to dangerous extremes. Unlike the controlled, "cool" burns used in traditional moorland management - which are quick, surface-level, and designed to prevent fuel build-up - these wildfires burned deep into the peat, releasing massive plumes of toxic smoke.

Extreme Particulate Levels: In the absence of fire management, PM2.5 concentrations reached astronomical peaks. The data recorded levels as high as 26,439 µg/m³. To put that in perspective, the World Health Organization’s average daily safe limit is just 15 µg/m³.
Dangerous Gases: Carbon monoxide levels also surged, creating a toxic environment for local residents.
Health Impact: The study explicitly links these unmanaged fires to severe health risks for vulnerable groups, including infants, the elderly, and pregnant women.

Why This Matters for our Moorlands

You might ask, "What does a tropical fire have to do with the North York Moors or the Pennines?" The answer lies in prevention.

The devastation described in this paper is exactly what Moorland Association members work tirelessly to avoid. By actively managing vegetation (fuel loads) through grazing and rotational burning, we reduce the risk of the "hot," uncontrolled wildfires seen in this study.

When peatlands are left unmanaged, the vegetation grows long and dry, acting as a tinderbox. If a wildfire starts - whether from a lightning strike or a discarded BBQ - it can burn with the ferocity described in the research, damaging the underlying peat and releasing the carbon we are trying to store.

Supporting Our Values

This research validates the traditional wisdom of rural land managers:

Conservation: Preventing wildfires is the single best way to protect the peat carbon store and ground-nesting bird habitats.
Community: Active stewardship protects our rural neighbours from the air pollution and health risks associated with massive wildfires.
Stewardship: Doing nothing is not an option. Active management is essential to keep peatlands wet, healthy, and safe.

Quick Statistics

2023 Wildfire Season: The period studied saw severe degradation of air quality due to lack of fire control.
>26,000 µg/m³: The peak concentration of PM2.5 particles recorded in the worst affected areas - thousands of times higher than safe limits.
Significant Difference: Statistical tests confirmed a massive, dangerous gap in air quality between the managed (rainy/safe) periods and the unmanaged fire season.