Piedmont is burning: over 700 thousand trees destroyed by fires (and it will take 70 years for the forests to be reborn)

The fire emergency that is putting the woods of Piedmont to the test shows no signs of abating. In the last few hours, the flames have regained strength with dramatic vigor in Premosello Chiovenda, in the Verbano Cusio Ossola area where two dangerous fire fronts were suddenly reactivated, positioned respectively in the area below the Cola, right above the hamlet of Colloro, and along the road route leading to the town of Lut.

Despite the incessant mobilization of the ground teams, the fire continues to smolder insidiously under the vegetative layer even in the industrial area between Premosello and Cuzzago, near the Cipir and Liquigas plants, imposing an uninterrupted security presence.

An extreme alert notice has been issued

The environmental situation has pushed the municipal administration to issue an extreme alert notice to protect the most vulnerable subjects. The Colloro mountain basin in fact favors the dangerous stagnation of toxic gaseous substances and harmful fine particles such as PM2.5 and PM1, invisible to the naked eye but capable of penetrating deep into the lungs.

For this reason, the Municipality has invited families with newborns, the elderly and people with heart or respiratory problems to temporarily leave their homes. Residents who remained on site were advised to seal the windows, constantly humidify the rooms and frequently hydrate the children.

The dramatic toll of unprecedented environmental devastation

The overall data collected in the regional territory describe a real natural disaster. The flames, originally triggered by lightning during summer storms and fueled by record temperatures that reached 39 degrees in Domodossola, have already reduced approximately 900 hectares of forest to ashes in the provinces of Turin, Vercelli, Novara and Verbano Cusio Ossola. Official estimates speak of as many as 700 thousand trees destroyed, an immense damage that strikes at the heart of local biodiversity, decimating microfauna and pushing large mammals, such as roe deer and chamois, to flee in fear towards inhabited centres.

An extraordinary action plan is coming from the Region

The regional councilor for the Mountains, Marco Gallo, illustrated the extraordinary action plan prepared to stem the crisis and plan the future reconstruction of the destroyed wooded areas. Before proceeding with forced artificial plantings, the Region will carefully evaluate the natural regeneration capacity of the mountain soil. It will be a very long and complex journey: according to forestry experts, it will take from two to five years just to witness the reappearance of the first pioneer plant species, while it will take up to 70 years to see the beech and oak forests in their original and majestic ecological maturity.