Mountain fire in Japan’s Iwate Prefecture may cause environmental problems

March 1, 2025 – A massive fire in the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, has burned 1,200 hectares, the largest in Japan in more than 30 years. The fire has not only caused casualties and burned down houses, but also had many negative impacts on the local ecosystem, such as destroying vegetation and causing soil erosion, and releasing a large amount of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and soot particles during the combustion process, which exacerbated air pollution.