The increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires has become a burning issue in recent years. While wildfires are a natural part of many ecosystems, their growing destructive power is anything but natural. Acres of old growth forests, countless homes and businesses, and tragically, both wildlife and human lives have been claimed by these infernos. 

But why are there so many wildfires? And more importantly, how can we prevent them from spreading out of control?

Is climate change causing more wildfires?

You bet it is. Climate change is a major contributor to worsening wildfire seasons, with the peak years for wildfires coinciding with the warmest years on record nationwide. As climate change makes it hotter and drier, wildfire seasons last longer, creating more fires and burning more land.

In the United States, the wildfire season starts earlier and overstays its welcome well into fall. This extended season means more opportunities for wildfires to spark and spread. 

Additionally, extreme fires, which are extremely large and destructive fires, have more than doubled over the last 20 years. Extreme fires destroy homes, lives and forests that will never be able to recover. They generate huge amounts of air pollution which is breathed by a lot of people. And, because they are fueled by high nighttime temperatures in addition to high daytime temperatures, they spread very quickly and are extremely difficult to fight.

Natural and unnatural causes of wildfires

Wildfires are the result of a perfect storm of natural conditions and human actions. Human activity is the most common cause of unnatural wildfires, accounting for 84% of wildfire events in the country. Unattended campfires, discarded cigarettes, fireworks, and arson are the usual suspects from human activity.

But Mother Nature also has a hand in it, starting unexpected blazes through droughts and lightning strikes.

Climate change, however, amplifies these extreme weather events, creating a worrying cycle—increasing temperatures make hotter seasons; hotter seasons make worse wildfires and worse wildfires burn more trees, releasing stored carbon into the atmosphere that further fuels climate change.

Firefighters on the Frontlines: Climate Change and Wildfire Battles

Wildland firefighters devote their careers to protecting people and ecosystems from wildfire damage. They’re the ones with boots on the ground, witnessing firsthand that climate change is making wildfires bigger, more extreme, more dangerous, and harder to contain. As one former wildland firefighter put it:

“Firefighters like me can see the link between climate change and the escalating wildfire crisis. Fire seasons are becoming longer, and the summers are hotter and drier. A perfect storm of more people in the woods, combined with a century of fuel buildup, plus a rapidly heating climate, has made the job of firefighting ever more dangerous.”

As wildfires occur ever closer to cities and towns, it’s requiring urban firefighters to be trained on how to combat wildfires so that they can keep us all safe.  

Is climate change causing more wildfires?

You bet it is. Climate change is a major contributor to worsening wildfire seasons, with the peak years for wildfires coinciding with the warmest years on record nationwide. As climate change makes it hotter and drier, wildfire seasons last longer, creating more fires and burning more land.

In the United States, the wildfire season starts earlier and overstays its welcome well into fall. This extended season means more opportunities for wildfires to spark and spread. 

Additionally, extreme fires, which are extremely large and destructive fires, have more than doubled over the last 20 years. Extreme fires destroy homes, lives and forests that will never be able to recover. They generate huge amounts of air pollution which is breathed by a lot of people. And, because they are fueled by high nighttime temperatures in addition to high daytime temperatures, they spread very quickly and are extremely difficult to fight.