Nearly two-thirds of counties in the Western U.S. are now considered high or very high risk for wildfire, according to research group Climate Central, which analyzed U.S. Forest Service data.
That’s because human-caused climate change is creating wildfires that burn longer and stronger, said Kaitlyn Trudeau, a senior research associate at Climate Central.
“The kind of wildfires we're seeing now are not the same kind of fires that we would consider to be natural and healthy,” she said. “They are monster fires. The conditions that really allow these fires to blow up have become much more frequent.”
When high temperatures, low humidity, and strong winds combine, it’s known as fire weather. According to Climate Central, fire weather days are becoming more and more common throughout the West.
Trudeau said these hot, dry and windy conditions make wildfires easier to start and spread, and more challenging for fire protection agencies to fight or prevent.
She added that this comes at a time when more people are moving into the wildland-urban interface, where wildlands and development collide.
In all, more than one-third of the U.S. population (nearly 116 million people) and about one-third of all buildings (48 million homes and residential structures) are in areas with high wildfire risk.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
