![]() "Those forests are actually adapted to burn, they are evolved to burn, very approximately every 100-200 years," Barber said. Many of Canada's fires are in the boreal forest, in remote areas north of the zone that contains the country's biggest cities. So it's been one of these things we've just kind of had to deal with," Perrakis said. "We have papers from the early 1900s talking about smoky days over American cities, going back to the 1700s. Massive plumes of smoke have also reached Europe, but in most cases, particulates have stayed high in the atmosphere, easing health concerns there. When it reaches the U.S., much of the smoke lingers at low altitudes, triggering orange and red alerts. So things are really sticking around more, and the jet stream is weaker." So we've got drier fuels, and the smoke and circulation patterns are less dynamic. Now we're seeing these big ridges stick around for much longer. "If you get a blocking ridge, a big mass of summer air that dries out all your fuels, in the past that might sit over top of an area for a week. "I think the most insidious kind of effect is the persistence of these weather patterns," Perrakis said. Stubborn air circulation patterns have forced tens of millions of people to adjust their daily lives as their communities come under unhealthy air quality alerts. Smoke from the blazes is affecting people in the U.S. No, the wind won't simply blow the smoke away "What's important to understand is that the only fires that are allowed to burn are those which do not threaten human lives, communities, or other critical values," Barber said. ![]() In those perilous locations, it's not worth the risk to send firefighters into the flames' path. We've seen these multiple times this season." Driven by strong winds, he added, "they can spread out 50 meters a minute, 70 meters a minute - 20 or 30 kilometers a day. "They burn with crown fire behavior," Perrakis said. But the fires can attain dangerous intensity, particularly in current conditions. It's part of a natural cycle for Canada's boreal forests to burn (more on that below). If a wildfire doesn't put those values at risk, it could be monitored and left to burn. "There are other protected values such as communities, infrastructure, and natural resources and environmental values," he said. 1 priority is human life and safety," Barber said, citing a 2020 paper. "All provinces follow one rule above all the No. France, the U.S., Mexico and other countries have sent firefighters to Canada to help battle unprecedented wildfires. "A lot of that forest is remote, untouched wilderness, and it's very difficult to manage wildfire in those areas where there is no road access or any of the infrastructure needed to support firefighting activity."ĪFP via Getty Images French firefighters work among trees north of the city of Chibougamau in Quebec in early June. "Canada is the second-largest country in the world, and almost half of that is forest," Barber said. Many of the fires have sprung to life in very remote areas, leaving Canadian provinces to decide which fires can and should be fought. ![]() has enough firefighters for these fires, and Canada most certainly does not," Perrakis said. No, Canada can't simply put out all the fires Here is their analysis of the wildfires, edited for length and clarity: Sarah Budd, provincial information officer of the British Columbia Wildfire Service.Daniel Perrakis, a fire research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service in British Columbia.Paige Fischer, an environmental scientist at the University of Michigan. ![]() Quinn Barber, a fire science analyst at the Canadian Forest Services in Alberta.To get answers about Canada's wildfire, NPR contacted four experts: should simply get used to the idea that their summers will be marked by weeks of smoke rather than blue skies and clear sunshine. And there are concerns about whether this might simply be the new normal - if people in the central and eastern U.S. The smoke raises a number of questions, from why the fires have lasted so long to how smoke keeps ruining air quality for tens millions of people in the U.S.įor many people, the smoke is worse than any other time in recent memory. skies with an unhealthy haze for weeks, becoming a hallmark of the 2023 summer. Smoke from Canada's wildfires has filled U.S. ![]()
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