preview

The Cause For Increasing Fire Activity Is Climate Change

Decent Essays

One leading cause for increasing fire activity is climate change. Over the past several hundred years, average temperatures across the globe have increased. Warming temperatures have shortened winter and spring by melting snow packs and drying out areas prematurely. They have also staved off the chilling temperatures of fall. Altogether, summer and the firefighting season is 78 days longer than it was, even in the last several decades. As a result, burnable fuels are exposed to extreme temperatures for a longer period of time. Prolonged exposure to such temperatures drives the moisture out of the fuels. Additionally, fuel moisture directly relates to fuel flammability. With high fuel moistures, fuels like trees and shrubs will have a difficult time being ignited. Not coincidentally, fires under these conditions tend to be creeping in nature and unable to rapidly devour land. However, when fuel moistures low, percentages in the teens or single digits, fire can spread very rapidly and run across the landscape. So, climate change does directly affect fire behavior and increasing fire behavior. But, that is not all. Increasing fire behavior and increasing temperatures due to climate change is a cycle. Warm temperatures enable fuel moistures decline and fires are able to take off and engulf millions of acres a year in fire. In turn, fires, more specifically large ones, emit enormous amounts of exhaust. In a study conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture, the

Get Access