Climate Adaptation
Argentina Wildfires Spread to Engulf Key Cattle Farming Region
- Fires in northeast province come as climate change fears mount
- Damage compounds broader impact of South American drought
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Blazes are tearing through northeast Argentina, consuming more land than a typical California wildfire season and threatening a key cattle farming region in this major beef exporter.
“I’ve never seen fires like this,” said lifelong rancher Juan Jose Ramirez. Ramirez, 81, lost 1,300 hectares (3,212 acres) after a spark from a passing train ignited fields parched by the worst drought in about 70 years. “We’ve been herding 1,000 cows away from danger as the flame rings advance,” he said in a phone interview.