![]() Canada lacks a national firefighting service, and local resources are stretched thin due to budget cuts. It is difficult to get permission for controlled burns, especially for Indigenous groups who have historically performed them and are disproportionately affected by wildfires. Canada has generally stopped performing controlled burns, which help reduce the risk of larger and more dangerous fires. Because Canada's forest management has focused on fire suppression, dry vegetation has accumulated on the forest floor. įorest management is also a factor in the wildfires. The 2023 Western North America heat wave exacerbated the wildfires in Alberta. Due to climate change, similar extreme weather events may continue to increase in both frequency and severity across our country." Following the Quebec wildfires, an analysis by World Weather Attribution showed that in Quebec, because of climate change, fire weather is twice as likely to occur and 20% more intense. Canadian Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair said: "These conditions, this early in the season, are unprecedented. Wind from a passing cold front during the week of May 18 exacerbated the fire risk. ĭue to climate change, weather has been warmer and drier, raising wildfire risk as vegetation is more flammable under these conditions. The 2023 fires have been compared to the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire and the 2021 Lytton wildfire. In Canada, wildfire season usually starts in May. Since 1959, the number of large fires greater than 200 ha (490 acres) has increased and the average fire season has become longer by about two weeks. Wildfires are changing in Canada: in general, since the 1970s and 1980s, the total annual number of wildfires has decreased but the area burned in Canada has increased. ![]() In late June, the smoke crossed the Atlantic, reaching Europe. ![]() Smoke emitted from the wildfires has caused air quality alerts and evacuations in Canada and the United States. International aid has helped reduce the impact of the fires. As of October 6, there were 772 wildfires active, and 346 of those were deemed "out of control". Īs of October 6, 6,551 fires had burned 184,961 square kilometres (71,414 sq mi 45,705,000 acres), about 5% of the entire forest area of Canada, and more than six times the long-term average of 27,300 square kilometres for that time of the year. The 2023 wildfire season has seen the most area burned in Canada's recorded history, surpassing the 1989, 1995, and 2014 fire seasons, as well as in recorded North American history, surpassing the 2020 Western US wildfire season. All 13 provinces and territories have been affected, with large fires in Alberta, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec. Perimeters of 2023 Canadian wildfires - season to date ( map data)īeginning in March 2023, and with increased intensity starting in June, Canada has been affected by an ongoing, record-setting series of wildfires.
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