Researchers have found that California's fire season is starting earlier and lasting longer than two decades ago, primarily due to climate change. In the Sierra Nevada, it begins 24 days earlier, while the Cascade Range sees a 46-day shift. Despite a population increase of 27% since the early 1990s, human-ignited fires have decreased. The study attributes the shift in fire season to climate-related factors, including earlier snowmelt and increased drying of vegetation resulting from rising temperatures.
In the Sierra Nevada, fire season starts about 24 days earlier than it did in the early 1990s. In the Northern Basin and Range region, fire season is 31 days earlier.
Fire season now begins 46 days earlier than it once did in the Cascade Range, which runs into Oregon, according to a publication in the journal Science Advances.
Human-ignited fires have dropped significantly during that time, enabling researchers to rule out human-caused blazes as the source of the additional burn days.
The main driver is the climate and meteorological conditions, primarily due to earlier snowmelt and increased drying of soils and flammable vegetation as temperatures rise.
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