California fires sparked by climate change

California fires sparked by climate change

These days, the world is witnessing an environmental catastrophe by all standards, a catastrophe added to many extreme weather catastrophes, to the point that these catastrophes have become a general situation in many countries of the world, reflecting the reality of climate change, which has become closer to human life and health since the Great Industrial Revolution. So, follow in this article what Earth Guards will shed light on the most famous climate disaster occurring in the United States of America.

California fire details

In the past few hours, the state of California – the most populous state in America – witnessed deadly fires, which were carried by winds last Friday at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour, making them the most destructive fires in the history of the state of California, especially the area through which the drySanta Ana winds pass.

Regarding this deadly climate accident, the American authorities announced an increase in the toll of human and material losses, and until the early hours of Saturday, efforts were still continuing to try to stop these fires after the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents of the state, as dry winds blow very quickly; The fire then spread, consuming many areas – such as Pacific County – despite firefighting efforts.

Who did it?

First of all, the finger of blame points to the wrong practices of encroachment on agricultural lands, tree forest lands, and livestock grazing, as well as some wrong methods in the efforts of the firefighters who are dealing with this disaster; California fire disaster.

This accusation may seem logical at first glance, but the real accusation must be directed primarily at climate change, the first enemy of nature. Because the speed of dry winds indicates – in one way or another – the clear relationship between climate change and California fires.

The fire was thus described – according to reports from AccuWeather, a weather forecasting organization – as resulting from one of the most severe wind events the region has witnessed in the past decade. California is battling strong winds spreading throughout the length and breadth of the state, until they directly caused the spread of forest fires in this way.

This description is what was confirmed by one of the most important AccuWeather experts – Ken Clarke – saying that this event is among the two or three largest events in terms of intensity, and he also indicated that the current situation is worse than any normal wind event that the Santa Ana region has previously witnessed, known for its strong winds.

Looking back, we find that California is an American state with a hot and burning history since the 1980s. A study published by Science Daily says that high temperatures and the resulting drought since 1984 have caused fires to spread on the West Coast of the United States of America. That is, the area in which the state of California is located.

To understand the role of climate change in forest burning incidents – more precisely – a research team from the Scripps Research Institute compared the history of fires in the western United States with the timing of snowmelt, and spring and summer temperatures over a period of 33 years. That is, from 1970 to 2003. The research team also used other climate data, including observations of seasonal temperatures and humidity loss rates.

There the researchers found that changes from year to year in the frequency of forest fires appear to be closely related to annual temperatures in spring and summer, taking into account the timing of snowmelt in the spring.

So, California was – and still is – suffering from drought for most of the past decade until the winter of 2022-2023, and then the state witnessed two years of continuous rainfall, with a lack of rain over the skies of the western side of California; Which caused the weather to become dry in recent months in the state.

This increasing rise in temperatures is attributed – according to research by the Earth Observatory at Columbia University – to severe climate change, which causes climate phenomena such as forest fires. Scientists and government officials have recently begun to blame it, in part, on climate change.

Dry California winter

Extreme winter weather patterns in California are generally attributed to the northerly air current in winter – especially between September and May – which is known as the “Santa Ana” current; Which causes Northern California to be drowned in a fair amount of rain and snow, while at the same time scorching the south of the state with dry winds.

In addition to the hot weather that southern California experiences in the winter, data indicate that the vegetation in this southern region of California has dried up, just as was the case during the hot summer months. Dry grasses and trees were good conductors of heat; Which contributed to the rapid and dangerous spread of the California fires.

Future expectations

Many scientists who are studying this issue – the issue of the California fires – believe that the growth of forest fires in the western United States of America will continue for many years, which makes us point the finger at climate change with its global warming that is killing humans and their environment.

In conclusion,Earth Guards keeps in mind this frightening fact, which is that climate change is a killer that does not differentiate between humans and the environment. It is a threat to all parts of the Earth and those on it, so we must work to combat it. For a sustainable life for us and for future generations.