Unprecedented wildfires in Canada last year were three times more likely due to climate change and contributed to high levels of CO2 emissions from burning globally, according to the first annual review of its kind.
Unprecedented wildfires in Canada last year were three times more likely due to climate change and contributed to high levels of CO2 emissions from burning globally, according to the first annual review of its kind.
The State of Wildfires report takes stock of extreme wildfires of the last fire season (March 2023-February 2024) explains their causes and evaluates how the risk of similar events will change in future under different climate change scenarios. Using satellite observations as well as advanced climate and fire modelling, it is co-led by the University of East Anglia (UEA), the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), the Met Office and European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts.
Fires in Canada led to more than 230,000 evacuations and eight firefighters lost their lives. An unusually high number of fires were also seen in northern parts of South America, which led to the Amazon region experiencing among the worst air quality ratings on the planet.
Read more at: UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Photo Credit: Saiho via Pixabay
