'An unprecedented rate': McGill study says mountain-side wildfires becoming increasingly common
The prevalence of wildfires has become difficult to ignore these past few years.
In 2020 alone, devastating fires swept across California, Australia, the Amazon, Siberia and Indonesia, to name a few places. Just a few years earlier, major fires ripped through parts of Western Canada, destroying homes and costing millions in damage. British Columbia saw its worst fires on record in 2018, with 1.35 million hectares burned.
As summers grow drier and hotter, fires are spreading more quickly and frequently. According to one team of researchers from McGill University, this is especially true when it comes to a particular type of terrain: mountains.
Over the decades, forest fires have inched steadily uphill, making their way up mountains which, at one point, were too wet to burn. Mohammad Reza Alizadeh, a McGill PhD student, says mountain forests have become increasingly arid, making them the ideal kindling for raging wildfires.
"Because of the climate warming, we’re going to see hotter and drier weather in the future," he said.
Alizadeh is the lead author of a recent McGill study that analyzed records of major fires in the mountainous regions of the Western U.S. between 1984 and 2017. The study, published June 1, found that fires travelled in an upslope advancement of roughly 7.6 metres a year.
"It was supposed before that the fire goes up to [certain] treelines, let’s say, but after that it vanishes because of the presence of humidity," he said. "But now [we see] decreasing humidity."
According to the study, forest fires have been enabled in an additional 11 per cent of western forests because of these progressively arid conditions.
DISTURBING THE NATURAL ORDER
While high-elevation forest fires can have severe consequences for mountain wildlife and ecosystems, they can also have a significant impact on life down below.
"[High elevation forests] are really important in terms of natural and also human systems and resources," said Alizadeh.
As Alizadeh puts it, high mountains serve as "natural-order towers," providing substantial amounts of water to the people and wildlife downstream. Forest fires can impact the quality and quantity of these waters, and dramatically alter the amount of time it takes for them to reach the ground, with flooding being an increased risk.
These fires even have an impact on avalanches, says Alizadeh, as a mountain’s forest can serve as a protective barrier against them. Without this "anchor point," avalanches can travel faster and farther.
Alizadeha says that unless we take the steps to reverse climate change, these problems will become more pronounced over time.
"This is an unprecedented rate [...] that we’ll see more and more in the future, unfortunately."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.