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Ecology & Environment
Mahesh

13/01/25 09:39 AM IST

Pink fire retardant

In News
  • As multiple wildfires continue to torch Southern California recently, authorities are using planes to drop a large amount of bright pink fire retardant to curb the blaze.
Pink fire retardant
  • Fire retardant is a mix of chemicals used to extinguish or slow down the spread of fires.
  • There are different types of fire retardant but to tackle wildfires in the US, authorities most commonly use Phos-Chek — a brand of fire retardant — which mostly contains an ammonium phosphate-based slurry.
  • Typically, it is made of salts such as ammonium polyphosphate, which does not evaporate easily like water and stays for longer.
  • The retardant is sprayed ahead of the fire in a bid to coat vegetation and prevent oxygen from allowing it to burn.
  • Colour is usually added to the fire retardant to ensure that firefighters can see it against the landscape.
  • This helps them create fire lines around the fire retardant, potentially saving lives and property.
  • Phos-Chek is pink because the colour is “by far the most visible.
Environmental concerns
  • Environmental experts have said that spraying fire retardant using planes is ineffective, expensive and a growing source of pollution for rivers and streams.
  • A 2024 study by researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) found that Phos-Chek “is laden with toxic metals, and estimates retardant use has released 850,000 pounds of these chemicals into the environment since 2009,”.
  • These toxic metals include chromium and cadmium which can cause cancer, and kidney and liver diseases in humans.
  • However, their adverse impact on the environment is of more concern, especially when retardants enter waterways. For instance, the aforementioned toxic metals can kill aquatic life.
  • The effectiveness of Phos-Chek also remains unclear. That is because it is one of the numerous firefighting tactics deployed in a major fire. After the flames are extinguished, it is difficult to assign credit.
  • Forest Service scientists in their study found that the effectiveness of aerial retardants depends on environmental conditions such as slope, fuel type, terrain and weather.
  • As global temperatures continue to soar, the wildfires are expected to get even more frequent and intense. This will only increase the use of aerial fire retardants.
  • Data show that more than 440 million gallons of retardant were unleashed on federal, state, and private land between 2009 and 2021 in the US.
  • The USC study, using this figure, estimated that between 2009 and 2021, more than 400 tons of heavy metals were released into the environment from fire suppression.
Source- Indian Express

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