U.S. Fires Quadrupled in Size, Tripled in Frequency in 20 Years

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By Kimberly M. S. Cartier, Eos/AGU. 

Excerpt: Changes including intensifying drought, expansion into burnable land, and an increase in human-caused ignitions have led to a shift in fire patterns....Extreme fires increased primarily in the western and Great Plains regions, while moderate and small fires worsened across the entire country. These fire pattern changes, which threaten human and ecosystem health, are attributed to a combination of climate change impacts and human expansion into new and burnable land.…

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