Wildfires burn in the Cariboo

Observation: I remember driving home everyday with smoke drifting across the road. My family and I could see the orange glow of fires along the ridge line of the mountains across the river from our farm. The sun was orange during the day and so too was the moon at night. The air was so thick with smoke that we couldn't see at times much further than our fence line. We had to keep the kids inside and limit their exposure at times. We couldn't open the windows since the air was so thick with smoke. It was an unusually hot dry spell for the region and with the discussions about global climate change just surfacing people in the region began to connect the dots. Basically, it was first indication, for many, that changes in climate had begun. - Earl Terangeau

LEO Comment: The year 2010, tied with 1998 as the warmest year on record, thus far (Figure 1). Since that time, the most recent 3 years have each subsequently been the warmest years on record globally (Figure 2). It is typical that western North America warms disproportionately (Figure 3). Given these patterns of increasing temperatures, and the fact that 2010 was the warmest year on record to date, it is not surprising that 2010 was an historic fire year as well given that combustible fuel had never been so available. Examining precipitation data for this region would also be helpful in understanding why 2010 had so many wildfires. - Tom Okey, Ocean Integrity Research and the University of Victoria.