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Abstract

Earth’s climate is changing and summers in many places are getting warmer and longer. If you live in a relatively cold region, such as Canada, warmer summers might not sound too bad. Yet a closer look into the long-term effects would surely give you the chills.  

In this study, we focused on one of these effects: increases in the area burned by wildfires and the cost of fighting them. We examined historical data and used models to predict future costs. Our calculations revealed some eye-opening news. If greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere continue to rise, then many Canadian provinces could experience extreme fire years more often than ever. Consequently, Canadians may be spending a whopping $1.4 billion annually (a 119% increase) by the end of the century to fight those fires. This does not even include human health evacuation costs or insurance payouts.

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About this article

Reading level
Scientific field
Key words
NGSS standards
AP Environmental science topics
IB Biology topics
Scientific methods
Type of figure
Location of research
Scientist Affiliation
Publication date
March 2017

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