CNN last night was busy discussing the motives behind the arsonists who are now being blamed for the forest fires, as if they were just madmen. I was amazed. I'm sorry to be cynical but forest fires have been a regular feature of summer in Greece. Whilst the dry weather and the August meltemi wind obviously play a part, but there are other factors at work, as you can see from this post I made when we were still living in Athens.
Fires round Athens were always claimed to be started by arsonists paid by developers who wanted to clear land for building. It was hard for them to get planning permission in some areas, so a bit of forest clearing could produce more land. Although the government was always promising that building would not be allowed and trees would be replaces, somehow it has never happened.
Clearly forest fires on the scale of those shown on the satellite photos cannot all be caused by arson, or at least were not intended on that scale and have gone badly astray. But the result will probably be the same in the areas where land for building is in short supply.
