Bushfires arrive earlier, are more intense and cause more trouble

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ustralian bushfires are arriving earlier in the season, more frequent, more intense and more troubling, reflecting what is happening in other parts of the world.

Author Kyle Dickman has written about why, in America wildfire seasons are so bad and getting worse in, “On the Burning Edge”.

Wildfires in the U.S. have been growing more severe, more costly and more frequent over the past half century.

Dickman writes that mismanagement, suppressing natural fires and allowing forests to grow dense, as well as encroaching development have led to worse fires, with climate change providing even more fuel.

With longer periods of drought and hotter temperatures wicking moisture from the forests, much of the West is a tinderbox. Research shows conditions will continue to worsen as the planet continues to warm.

Read The Inside Climate News interview with Dickman - “The Deadlier Scourge of Wildfires in an Age of Climate Change”.