New Reports Predict Major Fire Risk in 2009, Beyond
There have already been twice as many wildland fires in the first three months of 2009 as there had been during the same period in 2008. And that's the good news.
According to two reports -- one federal and one state -- California and the rest of the nation should brace for another bad fire year in 2009, and that, down the road, the state could see fire losses average $2 billion a year.
The federal report, issued by the National Interagency Fire Center, says there have been nearly 25,000 wildland and forest fires in the first three months of 2009. That's nearly double the 13,000+ fires reported in the same period a year ago. Though acreage is down from 2008, the fires have still charred nearly 700,000 acres.
And it's still just spring.
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As sobering as the 2009 picture is, the prospects for the future are even worse.
A newly-updated report on California's environment says that global climate change will mean more fires, more floods and annual fire losses that will average more than $2 billion a year by 2050 and $14 billion a year by 2100.
The report from the California Environmental Protection Agency synthesizes 37 different scientific surveys.
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