New study highlights alarming trend in forest fires with far-reaching consequences: 'Poses a significant challenge'

Despite a decline in the total burnt areas by wildfires, carbon dioxide pollution from fires surged 60% globally since 2001, according to Bloomberg. The fires are also becoming more severe, damaging ecosystems more now than in the past.

What's happening?

A study done by an international team of researchers found an alarming surge in carbon pollution from forest fires globally. Their study reports a 60% surge since 2001. They also found fires are becoming more numerous and burning more acres in regions that are warming fast outside of the tropics.

Forests act as crucial carbon sinks, capturing 25% of the pollution generated by human activities such as fossil fuel combustion.

Forests absorb about twice as much carbon as they emit each year, but researchers noted a significant uptick in forest fire severity or the amount of carbon released per unit of area charred by fires. The study found it climbed by about 50% worldwide.

"The steep trend towards greater extratropical forest fire emissions is a warning of the growing vulnerability of forests," said the study's lead author and a researcher at the University of East Anglia in the U.K., Matthew Jones, per Bloomberg. "It poses a significant challenge for global targets to tackle climate change. This signals that fires are causing much more damage to forest ecosystems than they did in the past. This will challenge the ability of forests to rebound— and recapture lost carbon — after fires."

Why is a surge in carbon pollution important?

Carbon is a heat-trapping gas. The use of fossil fuels pushed global carbon pollution to a record high in 2024, a year that is a virtual lock to end up being Earth's warmest on record.

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"With over 40 billion tonnes released each year at present, the level of CO2 in the atmosphere continues to rise — driving increasingly dangerous global warming," according to a report from the World Meteorological Organization.

Our overheating planet is creating conditions more conducive to carbon-polluting wildfires. A study published last year found our warming world to blame for record-breaking California wildfires. Summer-burned areas in the northern and central parts of the state increased fivefold from 1996 to 2021 compared to 1971-1995.

What's being done about the surge in carbon pollution released from wildfires?

Replacing dirty energy sources with cleaner, renewable options will help cool down our planet. Advances in renewable energy technology are encouraging. This summer, researchers unveiled an innovative technology that outperforms conventional solar panels. New innovations in battery technology are leading to notable breakthroughs, too.