wildfires return to baseline
"Earth is an intrinsically flammable planet"
It seems that in California we've finally returned to the pre-colonial, natural level of annual wildfires. Pre-1800 roughly 5-10% of the land in California would burn each year. For a couple centuries humans were able to suppress this natural volume of wildfires, but now we're unable to continue doing that. There's too much accumulated fuel, too much global warming, and, too many humans starting fires.
The top three causes of wildfires in California are human-related: (1) mechanical equipment that causes sparks, (2) electrical equipment that causes sparks, and (3) intentional arson.
Just one example of how humans are no longer able to hold back the tide of nature -- because our own actions are overwhelming our ability to mitigate natural processes.
It seems that in California we've finally returned to the pre-colonial, natural level of annual wildfires. Pre-1800 roughly 5-10% of the land in California would burn each year. For a couple centuries humans were able to suppress this natural volume of wildfires, but now we're unable to continue doing that. There's too much accumulated fuel, too much global warming, and, too many humans starting fires.
The top three causes of wildfires in California are human-related: (1) mechanical equipment that causes sparks, (2) electrical equipment that causes sparks, and (3) intentional arson.
Just one example of how humans are no longer able to hold back the tide of nature -- because our own actions are overwhelming our ability to mitigate natural processes.