Plea for picnics not barbecues to prevent wildfires

The RSPB said barbecues were not allowed in its reserves

Nature reserve visitors have been urged to opt for a picnics over barbecues in an attempt to prevent wildfires this summer.

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service and RSPB said while wildfires were becoming more common due to climate change, they were most often started unintentionally by people.

The bird charity said barbecues and campfires were forbidden in all of its reserves, including RSPB The Lodge in Sandy, Bedfordshire which had "he largest stretch of heathland in the county, as well as acid grasslands, and towering oak woodland".

It also encouraged smokers to take extra care and asked visitors to take home their litter to prevent it catching fire.

An RSPB spokesperson said "2023 was confirmed as the world’s hottest year on record, according to the Met Office, and 2024 could be another year of high temperatures, risking heatwaves and fires across the country".

They added: "Valuable landscapes, and the wildlife that lives there, are at high risk of fires between April-September, due to their dryness.

"This is heightened during the summer months when more people choose to cook and eat outdoors, threatening the survival of this special landscape, the animals that call it home, and risking the personal safety of visitors enjoying it."

Peter Bradley, from the RSPB, added: "Fires can be started by items that people wouldn’t even consider a risk. The use of disposable barbecues is not allowed at RSPB sites as they are an obvious fire risk for green spaces, but even a glass drinks bottle left in dry heather, grasses or leaves can start a fire on a sunny day.

"And a discarded cigarette-end flicked can quickly turn into a blaze."

The RSPB said discarded cigarettes were believed to be the causes of three fires which burnt five hectares of grassland, crops and scrub at RSPB The Lodge, home to birds, lizards, and insects, in the summer of 2022.

Steve Fowler, from Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said: "Wildfires can ravage the local wildlife, destroying ecosystems in a matter of hours that have taken years to build up.

"Most heath fires start with human intervention, whether that’s carelessness or a deliberate act, so we need everyone who enjoys our beautiful open spaces across England to work with us to help protect them."