Almost 40% of land burned by western wildfires can be traced to carbon emissions

[Jim__]

From phys.org

Almost 40% of forest area burned by wildfire in the western United States and southwestern Canada in the last 40 years can be attributed to carbon emissions associated with the world's 88 largest fossil fuel producers and cement manufacturers, according to new research that seeks to hold oil and gas companies accountable for their role in climate change.

In findings published Tuesday in the journal Environmental Research Letters ( open access - Jim), the authors concluded that the emissions generated in the extraction of fossil fuels, as well as the burning of those fuels, have increased the amount of land burned by wildfire by raising global temperatures and amplifying dry conditions across the West. This growing dryness, or aridification, has caused the atmosphere to become "thirstier" for water, draining moisture from trees and brush and causing them to become more vulnerable to fire, the researchers say.

The study is the latest in a growing body of research known as extreme event attribution, or attribution science, which seeks to determine how much global warming has contributed to events such as heat waves, droughts and wildfires.

...

To quantify the impact of the fossil fuel industry on wildfires, Dahl and her colleagues built on previous research that has shown that carbon emissions traced to the top 88 fossil fuel producers and cement manufacturers—including Exxon Mobil, BP, Chevron and Shell—have contributed significantly to the average temperature by which the Earth has warmed. (Cement production is responsible for 8% of human-generated carbon dioxide—significantly less than the burning of fossil fuels.)

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[anciano]

1. This little marble in the universe that we call home

is the only home we have. There is no other place to go. Environmental stewardship is essential to our survival as a species. Sadly, whether or not we will collectively acknowledge and embrace that reality is yet to be determined.

[Duppers]

2. Indeed! 👍