Ben van Buiten: Short Temper
Nature is bone-dry and has a short fuse!
Ben van Buiten walks around outside, takes in what he comes across, and forms his own opinions about it. Sometimes big, sometimes small, often just enough to make him pause for a moment.
The grass crunches under your shoes as if you were walking on stale toast. The plants look as if they’ve lost their motivation, and somewhere someone says, “Gee, it sure is dry, isn’t it?” That’s right. It’s bone-dry. Not just a little. More like the kind of dryness where you water a plant, and it thanks you with a nod—and then falls over anyway.
It's that time of year again
Then, every year, the same collective experiment happens: the risk of wildfires. Or, in practice: “Would one little cigarette really make that much of a difference?” Yes! That’s kind of like asking if a single match could set a bale of hay on fire. It can. And it’s happy to. Right now, the forest isn’t a romantic stroll anymore, but a gigantic pile of fire-starting cubes that just happens to still be standing upright. One spark, a barbecue that’s “almost out,” or a cigarette butt that’s “definitely out”—and nature thinks: “Great, I’ll join in for a bit.”
It should be possible, right?
Fortunately, I see plenty of people who do pay attention. Hikers who pick up their trash, dog owners who carry water with them, and local residents who spot smoke faster than their barbecue sausage.
But there’s also a special category of people: those who think rules are optional. When they see a bone-dry nature reserve, they think, “Oh, one little fire can’t hurt.” And that’s exactly what the fire thinks, too. And fire isn’t very good at stopping in time.
So, one more time, plain and simple: no open fires in nature reserves. No campfires “just for fun.” And those disposable barbecues? They’re basically just portable forest fires with handles.
Common sense
In the meantime, the municipality is doing what it can: inspecting, mowing, and coordinating with the fire department and nature conservationists. But unfortunately, we can’t run after everyone with a bad idea and gently whisper, “Maybe you shouldn’t do that.” So we’re left with something that turns out to be surprisingly complicated every year: common sense. Enjoy the greenery, take good care of it, and don’t treat dry roadside verges as if they were a free trial lesson in arson. Summer can get hot—but let’s hope the forests don’t.
The outdoors doesn’t follow a schedule. This means new situations arise every day in public spaces. If you see something that doesn’t look right, you can easily report it using the BuitenBeter app. That way, we can all help keep things in order outdoors.