۴ý

Canada

    • Canada's 'unprecedented' fire season linked to climate change, will be the new normal: scientists

    Share

    The fury of wildfires is being seen and felt from coast to coast to coast. 

    At the moment, wildfires are burning across six provinces and one territory in Canada — and they’re still spreading in what’s being called an unprecedented fire season.

    While and prevent further destruction, scientists say the wildfires are linked to climate change and that this will be the new normal.

    “Across the world and by almost any metric that we look at, wildfires are growing worse,” Kristina Dahl, principal climate scientist for the climate and energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, told ۴ý.

    “They are burning larger areas, they're burning more severely, they're burning over a longer fire season in mountainous regions, they’re burning at higher elevations where it's typically cooler as well.”

    Though the factors may vary from place to place around the world, Dahl said there are some common threads for such destructive wildfires — climate change being one of them.

    “Climate change has been implicated in worsening wildfires across North America,” she said.

    “We also know that there are a lot more people living in wildfire-prone areas. And so that means that there are more people to potentially spark fires and more people affected when the fires do occur.”

    At a news conference Thursday, federal ministers said there are currently 211 wildfires burning in the country — 82 of which are burning out of control — and that climate change is the culprit.

    “It is a simple fact that Canada is experiencing the impacts of climate change, including more frequent and more extreme wildfires,” said Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson.

    “And the amount of forests burned by wildfire is projected to double by 2050 due to our changing climate, causing longer and more intense wildfire seasons, more extreme weather conditions and increased drought.”

    Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair called the conditions being reported this early in the fire season “unprecedented.” So far, more than 1,800 fires have broken out across the country this year, burning approximately 2.7 million hectares.

    “To put that in some context, that’s over five million football fields,” Blair said.

    “And the national average for hectares burned in the month of May over the last 10 years has averaged approximately 150,000 hectares, and so 2.7 million, I think, reflects how incredibly challenging this season has been.”

    Dave Phillips, a senior climatologist at Environment Canada, said there are three phenomena that are “truly connected” to climate change — rising sea levels, heat waves and .

    He said high temperatures, which are typically not seen until the summer months, are causing dry conditions and allowing forest fires to break out and some “very erratic” winds are causing the fires to spread.

    In the case of Atlantic Canada, Phillips said the by Hurricane Fiona last year have had several months to dry out, creating the perfect storm.

    “It was like a proper region of kindling wood,” he said in an interview with ۴ý.

    “Canada this year is really almost … a tinderbox in a lot of areas.”

    The Shaw fire is shown in this recent handout photo. The Shaw Fire has burned more than 1,331 square kilometres in northwest Saskatchewan. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency

    Some 28,000 people have already been forced to evacuate from their homes across Canada. The fires are disproportionately impacting indigenous communities, such as , but they have also surrounded urban areas.

    Nearly 1,000 firefighters from the U.S., Australia and New Zealand are in the country helping to fight the fires, with crews from South Africa arriving soon. The Canadian Armed Forces are on the ground in Alberta and on their way to Nova Scotia.

    “I think we’re literally in a battle for our lives and for our properties and for our homes,” Shaun Hatfield, an evacuee in Nova Scotia, said in an interview with ۴ý.

    Dahl offered one solution for preventing wildfires moving forward — “radically” reducing the amount of human development in wildfire-prone areas.

    “That should reduce the human ignitions of wildfire and the fact that people spark most wildfires,” she explained.

    “Unfortunately, it won't change the fact that we are warming and drying our climate and so making our wildfire prone areas even more (of a) fire problem.”

    Meanwhile, Phillips said people should be “much more vigilant” by making sure to put out campfires and avoid starting fires in places where fire bans are in place.

    “We need to care about our forested areas,” he said.

    For much of Canada, hot and dry weather is forecasted throughout June. And with a hotter and drier summer than normal expected ahead, Phillips said the full scope of the fire season has yet to be seen.

    “We have just started the season. And if this is the opening act, then boy, we're going to see a very, very hot and flamey kind of summer ahead.”  

    CTVNews.ca Top Stories

    BREAKING

    BREAKING

    Former Headley singer Jacob Hoggard has been found not guilty of sexually assaulting a young woman in northern Ontario.

    Police have arrested a Toronto woman in connection with three recent homicides and investigators say that they believe two of the victims may have been 'randomly targeted.'

    A northeastern Ontario jury has started deliberating in Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard's sexual assault trial, we can now tell you what they weren't allowed to hear.

    A teen charged with the murder of another teen on Prince Edward Island last year has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.

    At least two people are dead and others are injured after a fire ripped through a century-old building in Old Montreal early Friday morning, sources told Noovo Info.

    • The body of a British Columbia mountain climber has been located and recovered after the 39-year-old man was reported missing during a solo climb on Washington state's Mount Baker earlier this week.

    • A New Westminster senior is out $20,000 worth of gold jewelry after being approached by a scammer outside her home.

    • Many British Columbians were shaken awake early Friday morning when an earthquake struck in the Strait of Georgia, about 18 kilometres southwest of Tsawwassen.

    • Police have arrested a Toronto woman in connection with three recent homicides and investigators say that they believe two of the victims may have been 'randomly targeted.'

    • A 21-year-old man who was charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a Toronto police officer this week was out on bail at the time of the alleged offence, court documents obtained by ۴ý Toronto show.

    • Police say they have arrested a man in Burlington, Ont., in connection with child luring charges.

    • Three Calgary businesses have been ordered to shut down after inspectors discovered evidence of uninspected meat.

    • A person was airlifted to hospital following a serious crash in Taber, Alta., on Friday morning. Taber RCMP responded to the scene on Highway 864 around 10:30 a.m., for a crash involving an SUV and a semi-truck.

    • The Banff town sign, a popular spot for tourists, may soon have a new home.

    • The owner of a Gatineau, Que. café says it's 'silly' that Quebec's language watchdog is telling the business to write its Instagram posts in French.

    • Gas prices in Ottawa are set to rise this weekend after a slight uptick overnight.

    • BREAKING

      BREAKING

      Former Headley singer Jacob Hoggard has been found not guilty of sexually assaulting a young woman in northern Ontario.

    • At least two people are dead and others are injured after a fire ripped through a century-old building in Old Montreal early Friday morning, sources told Noovo Info.

    • The owner of a Gatineau, Que. café says it's 'silly' that Quebec's language watchdog is telling the business to write its Instagram posts in French.

    • A 28-year-old female driver was seriously injured in a three-vehicle collision Friday afternoon in Saint-Rémi, Montérégie, reports the Sûreté du Québec (SQ).

    • Alberta Health Services (AHS) says it is taking immediate action to expedite care for patients who had referrals to community health-care providers delayed.

    • A man is dead after he became trapped in a trench on Friday morning.

    • Four people were injured after a serious two-vehicle crash north of St. Paul, Alta. on Thursday.

    • A teen charged with the murder of another teen on Prince Edward Island last year has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.

    • The federal Fisheries Department says it is concerned about a "pattern" of violence and threats toward its enforcement officers after two tense incidents off southwestern Nova Scotia last month.

    • Friday marked the grand opening of 22 new seniors' apartments built from the ground-up on Pitt Street in Sydney Mines, N.S.

    • A new report from Doctors Manitoba is calling for major changes to the way sick notes are issued in Manitoba, saying they are a waste of time for doctors and employers.

    • Manitoba RCMP arrested a man after he allegedly pulled over two women on the highway pretending to be an RCMP officer.

    • The province has issued a high wind warning for parts of Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipeg.

    • A Saskatchewan man living in the United States has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography after he unknowingly provided disturbing videos to an FBI agent he thought was a pedophile.

    • Volunteer groups across southeast Saskatchewan are dealing with the effects of inflation while trying to raise money for community projects.

    • NDP Leader Carla Beck says she would cut $58 million in spending during her first year as premier should her party win the Saskatchewan election set for Oct. 28.

    • Police have laid charges after a car crashed into the side of a Kitchener home early Friday morning.

    • Melissa Duff-Shore, a Cambridge, Ont. woman who killed her daughter in 2020, has been ordered to a forensic hospital in St. Thomas.

    • The recent rabies-related death in Ontario has raised concerns about human exposure, but an assistant professor at the University of Guelph says we can learn a lot from the health of bat populations.

    • Saskatoon police arrested a homeless person at the scene of an encampment underneath the University Bridge on Friday morning.

    • A Saskatchewan man living in the United States has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography after he unknowingly provided disturbing videos to an FBI agent he thought was a pedophile.

    • The Saskatoon Police Service’s school resource unit is investigating an incident involving bear spray inside a school.

    • BREAKING

      BREAKING

      Former Headley singer Jacob Hoggard has been found not guilty of sexually assaulting a young woman in northern Ontario.

    • Two police officers in Greater Sudbury required medical attention for injuries they received arresting a man for the second time in just two days.

    • Police have arrested a Toronto woman in connection with three recent homicides and investigators say that they believe two of the victims may have been 'randomly targeted.'

    • The Ministry of Labour is investigating a workplace incident that claimed the lives of two people in Georgian Bluffs, south of Owen Sound.

    • Eleven victim impact statements were submitted into court during the proceedings.

    • Middlesex OPP have shuttered a road between Mount Brydges and Komoka today - Amiens Road is currently closed between Glendon Drive and Oriole Drive.

    • Three people from Simcoe County face charges in relation to a drug trafficking investigation that police say resulted in the seizure of several weapons, drugs and thousands of dollars worth of stolen property.

    • A woman whose son died last month while at a Penetanguishene, Ont. beach with another family member wants to see safety increased at the beach.

    • The Ministry of Labour is investigating a workplace incident that claimed the lives of two people in Georgian Bluffs, south of Owen Sound.

    • A London, Ont. man, who pleaded guilty earlier this year in a harassment case, has been sentenced to two months in jail for criminal harassment of a Windsor, Ont. family.

    • The City of Windsor is on the right path to adding much needed housing inventory to the stock, according to city officials.

    • More than 1,000 students walked the floors at some of the region’s most prominent manufacturers as part of Windsor’s largest Manufacturing Day to date.

    • The body of a British Columbia mountain climber has been located and recovered after the 39-year-old man was reported missing during a solo climb on Washington state's Mount Baker earlier this week.

    • Many British Columbians were shaken awake early Friday morning when an earthquake struck in the Strait of Georgia, about 18 kilometres southwest of Tsawwassen.

    • NDP Leader David Eby is vowing to raise British Columbia's speculation and vacancy tax on empty homes if re-elected premier this month.

    • Three young suspects have been arrested in connection with a swarming attack on a teenager in B.C.'s Okanagan last week – and authorities have asked the public to stop circulating disturbing videos of the incident.

    • A father in Kelowna is furious after his 13-year-old daughter was brutally beaten on Gyro Beach. He is calling for criminal charges in the devastating attack, which was caught on video by multiple bystanders.

    • The officer who shot and killed a forcible confinement suspect in Kamloops two years ago was justified in doing so, according to the Independent Investigations Office of B.C.

    • A person was airlifted to hospital following a serious crash in Taber, Alta., on Friday morning. Taber RCMP responded to the scene on Highway 864 around 10:30 a.m., for a crash involving an SUV and a semi-truck.

    • To enhance inclusivity at Lethbridge Polytechnic, the institution has launched a new accessibility micro-credential.

    • WestJet has changed its operations at the Lethbridge Airport, and it means there's now only a single daily flight from Lethbridge to Calgary, down from three flights a day, as offered previously.

    • Two teens, ages 14 and 19, have been charged with arson in connection with a July 14 fire in Cat Lake First Nation that destroyed $500,000 in construction materials.

    • A northeastern Ontario jury has started deliberating in Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard's sexual assault trial, we can now tell you what they weren't allowed to hear.

    • A suspect who accused Thunder Bay police of being responsible for his throat injury actually hurt himself when he swallowed a large amount of drugs.

    N.L.

    Local Spotlight

    Chantal Kreviazuk is set to return to Winnipeg to mark a major milestone in her illustrious musical career.

    From the beaches of Cannes to the bustling streets of New York City, a new film by a trio of Manitoba directors has toured the international film festival circuit to much pomp and circumstance.

    A husband and wife have been on the road trip of a lifetime and have decided to stop in Saskatchewan for the winter.

    The grave of a previously unknown Canadian soldier has been identified as a man from Hayfield, Man. who fought in the First World War.

    A group of classic car enthusiasts donated hundreds of blankets to nursing homes in Nova Scotia.

    Moving into the second week of October, the eastern half of Canada can expect some brisker fall air to break down from the north

    What does New Westminster's təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre have in common with a historic 68,000-seat stadium in Beijing, an NFL stadium and the aquatics venue for the Paris Olympics? They've all been named among the world's most beautiful sports venues for 2024.

    The last living member of the legendary Vancouver Asahi baseball team, Kaye Kaminishi, died on Saturday, Sept. 28, surrounded by family. He was 102 years old.

    New data from Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley shows a surge in supply and drop in demand in the region's historically hot real estate market.

    Politics

    Health

    Sci-Tech

    Entertainment

    Business

    Lifestyle

    • A five-seat sushi counter located inside another restaurant is the latest Vancouver eatery to receive a Michelin star.

    • What does New Westminster's təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre have in common with a historic 68,000-seat stadium in Beijing, an NFL stadium and the aquatics venue for the Paris Olympics? They've all been named among the world's most beautiful sports venues for 2024.

    Sports

    Autos

    • A Pickering, Ont., student going to college to be a mechanic is shocked the engine in his two-year-old car will not be repaired under warranty after the dealership claimed he had been 'over-revving' the engine.

    • A group of classic car enthusiasts donated hundreds of blankets to nursing homes in Nova Scotia.

    Shopping Trends

    The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at ۴ý. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.

    Stay Connected
    Follow ۴ý