The Vicious Cycle of Global Warming and US Wildfires

A Catch 22 is defined as a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions. The term seems like an appropriate one for the dilemma of the increasing occurrence of wildfires in the United States. 

A Catch 22 is defined as a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions. The term seems like an appropriate one for the dilemma of the increasing occurrence of wildfires in the United States.   In the U.S., there are actually more wildfires that  burn in the East. But those that occur in the West (Alaska, Arizona, California, and Oregon, to name a few states) are more formidable. They are larger, they burn longer, and they wreak havoc on more acreage.  The Rum Creek Fire, which has been burning in Oregon since mid-August of this year, has already ravaged 4,319 acres. That fire is just one of thirty-two wildfires currently burning in the state. Since January 1, of this year,  47,548 wildfires have razed 6,105,335 acres of land in the United States.  To say that wildfires are of particular concern is an understatement. The paradox is in the synergetic relationship between wildfires and climate change. Climate change has caused severe droughts and more prolonged heat waves all over the world. Studies show that the frequency of heat waves has steadily increased in the past several decades. We’ve certainly seen this illustrated in the United States’ West.  During the 1960s, the average number of heat waves per year was just two. In the decade from 2010 to 2020, that number increased to an average of six per year. To be clear, a heat wave is classified as a “period of unusually hot weather that typically lasts two or more days. To be considered a heat wave, the temperatures have to be outside the historical averages for a given area.” Climate change is continuously increasing our average hot temperatures. Just as climate change has induced more wildfires, conversely,  more wildfires are causing carbon dioxide-storing forests to suddenly release CO2 into the air. Then, as the forests smolder after the fires, the resulting decomposition releases even more CO2 in the air. That, in turn, triggers more climate changing effects. We end up seeing increased temperatures and droughts. Spring melting comes earlier and the amount of snow pack is reduced. This then decreases how much water is available in the summer. The result—more risk of wildfires. It’s a dangerous Catch 22 situation. Between 1980 and 2021, the United States has spent more than  $1 billion on fighting wildfires every year. In 2020 alone, they spent $2.3 billion. That doesn’t include the more than $1 billion dollars in damage the fires have caused in that time, the more than 1,000 firefighter lives lost, or the animals and people killed or injured.  Poor air quality and respiratory ailments have hospitalized survivors or have required ongoing health care.  The ecological damage has been substantial as well. The structure, function, and composition of forests affected by wildfires has been hefty. Not only are forests affected, but ecological resilience in the wildfire’s wake  is decreased as well. The consequential fallout includes soil erosion and changes to run-off. That, in turn, contaminates water supply reservoirs. Increased flooding and debris hazards increase. The  effect is diminished water quality, quantity, availability, and treatability. Smoke particles reduce solar radiation, black carbon leads to the middle and lower atmospheres warming, and we end up with more unpredictable weather patterns. The vicious cycle is always being fed. Climate change produces the conditions that enable more wildfires. Wildfires contribute to more climate change effects. On goes the cycle.  We aren’t helpless cogs in this precarious wheel, though. There are some basic safeguards we can take. Be mindful of where and how we burn. Pay attention to drought and weather conditions. Be safe where we build our campfires. Take precautions in putting them out. Keep vehicles off of dry grass. Check conditions before using fireworks. Be mindful of how we use the carbon-emitting trappings of our daily lives. Being aware is just the beginning of improving the situation. Spreading awareness is also important. Reminding ourselves of our responsibility to be good stewards of our planet is superlative. Saving our planet is the goal.   Reference https://www.climate.gov/ https://www.doi.gov/ https://www.epa.gov/ https://www.unep.org/ https://eri.nau.edu/