Climate change doubled chance of weather conditions that led to record Quebec fires, researchers say
Climate change more than doubled the chances of the hot, dry weather that helped fuel the unprecedented wildfire season in eastern Canada that's driven thousands from their homes and blanketed parts of the US with choking smoke, according to an analysis released Tuesday.
What's more, human-caused climate change made the fire season in Quebec — from May through July — 50% more intense than it otherwise would have been and increased the likelihood of similarly severe fire seasons at least sevenfold, researchers said.
«The biggest takeaway is, this is because of us that we have seen so many fires this year,” due to greenhouse gas emissions, said Yan Boulanger, a research scientist in forest ecology for Natural Resources Canada. He was one of 16 researchers who collaborated on the analysis for World Weather Attribution, an initiative that aims to quickly evaluate the role of climate change in the aftermath of extreme weather events.
Canada is in the middle of its worst wildfire season on record, with more than 5,800 fires burning over 153,000 square kilometers (59,000 square miles) from one end of the country to the other, according the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.
