Australia's fires: Finding a culprit

Arsony has always been a serious issue in Australia and individuals have been arrested for lighting fires since November 2019. However, no evidence exists to prove that the level of devastation the fires are causing is due to the start of deliberate fires. Fires are said to have most likely been exarcerbated by the dry hot climate, drought and lightning strikes this season has experienced. Also, important to point out, is the start location of these fires where most of them began in remote difficult access areas compared to arsony fires known to occur nearer to roadsides. 

The problem lies in the way rumors grew to such an extent that even Members of Parliament stated, with confidence, that the primary origin of these fires was arsony. They used the fact that “some form of ignition is needed” as justification. It would be helpful if important political figures given media coverage would not share information that can in no way be verified at this time. The spread of misinformation across the web can dangerously hinder any progress on bringing climate change to the forefront of our agenda.