Pyrocene is approaching us. At least, that’s the theory first presented by fire historian Stephen Payne in a 2015 article.

U.S. Forest Service ecologist Gavin Jones described the Pyrocene in a 2023 interview with Explorers magazine as the current era in which humans are experiencing greater igneous activity than ever before. Main driver – human activity.

the forest fires The current collapse of Los Angeles suburbs in California and beyond has killed at least 11 people so far as well as more than 30,000 acres of land and more than 10,000 buildings. It is the most destructive wildfire in the state’s history.

As wildfires become more frequent each year around the world, climate scientists are increasingly concerned that climate change is making them worse.

Severe and seemingly unstoppable wildfires in several neighborhoods of Los Angeles in California, US, which started on Tuesday, have killed at least 10 people and destroyed 10,000 homes and buildings. About 30,000 acres (12,000 hectares) of land have been burned, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).

All hands on deck to fight #PalisadesFire In Southern California. California is extremely grateful to the brave firefighters and first responders battling the blaze.

We will continue to mobilize resources and support local communities as they respond to this extreme weather. pic.twitter.com/JZrYy85e4z

– Governor Newsom (@CAgovernor) January 8, 2025

California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a video he posted on X on Wednesday that there is no longer a “season” for fires in California. “It’s year-round in California.”

Payne, professor emeritus at Arizona State University’s College of Life Sciences, agrees. He told Al Jazeera that now “we have to live with the Age of Fire, which is the Age of Fire equivalent to the Ice Age.”

Did climate change contribute to California wildfires?

It’s very likely, according to many experts.

Scientists warn that the planet is warming to record levels. The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) confirmed on Friday that 2024 was the first full year in which global temperatures fell. exceeded pre-industrial levels By 1.5 degrees Celsius.

C3S said the climate crisis is pushing the world to temperatures never before experienced by modern humans.

Climate change has contributed to increased wildfire frequency, season length, and area burned, according to a report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

As a result of all this, Payne says, global warming “adds energy to the system, increases wet and dry periods, lengthens the fire season, and intensifies all fires.” [already powerful] Elements that contribute to the California fire.

How does climate change lead to wildfires specifically?

The exact causes of the California fires, which started Tuesday in the Palisades area of ​​Los Angeles, are unknown and under investigation.

“But they’re human,” Payne says. “They may be directly connected to people [malice, carelessness] Or indirectly [say, through faulty power lines]. At the moment the origins are unclear.”

However, experts say it is likely a combination of environmental factors that created the ideal conditions for the calendar-defying fires to ignite. It spread as quickly as they did.

For one thing, Southern California hasn’t seen significant rainfall in months.

the Latest US Drought Monitor map It shows that as of January 7, only 39.1 percent of California is completely drought-free. The rest of the state is described as “abnormally dry” and some areas are experiencing “moderate to exceptional” droughts.

Around this time last year – as of January 2, 2024 – 96.7% of California was classified as drought-free. Furthermore, only 3.4% of the state was abnormally dry and no parts experienced drought of any severity.

Extremely dry conditions cause plants to become extremely dry and therefore highly flammable.

Besides, Los Angeles has an abundance of other flammable materials in its infrastructure, such as low-power cables and wooden telephone poles.

Hot Santa Ana winds also blew from inland toward the coast and offshore, drying out the vegetation further, experts say. When plants are very dry and conditions are flammable, any spark can start a fire, whether it’s a lit cigarette butt, a vehicle, or a power line.

Are other natural disasters linked to climate change?

Yes. Climate change combined with poor urban planning and management has exacerbated natural disasters, including natural disasters, globally Hurricanes, Hurricanes and Floods.

Scientists at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) believe that if the planet’s temperatures exceed the pre-industrial average by 2 degrees Celsius, hurricane wind speeds could increase by 10 percent.

They also say climate change may be slowing the pace — not the speed — at which hurricanes move. This means that storms can dump more water on the places they pass through.

Warm oceans help cyclones intensify quickly, says Roxy Mathew Cole, a climate scientist at the Indian Tropical Meteorological Institute in Pune. Al Jazeera said In April 2023.

In October last year, the World Weather Organization (WWA) issued He said Climate change caused by the use of fossil fuels has increased monsoon rainfall across the Niger and Lake Chad basins by between 5 percent and 20 percent in 2024, causing more flooding.

Asian countries have also witnessed it Severe floods In recent years. In April 2024, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) published a report that found that Asia was warming faster than the global average.

“Many countries in the region experienced the hottest year on record in 2023, along with a barrage of extreme conditions, from drought and heatwaves to floods and storms,” ​​World Meteorological Organization President Celeste Saulo said in a statement. She added that the “frequency and intensity of such events” were exacerbated by climate change.

Will these events become worse if climate change is not addressed?

Wildfires are expected to worsen over time as a result of climate and land-use change, according to a 2022 report by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and its partner, the Center for Environmental Communications, GRID-Arendal.

The report predicted that severe fires around the world would increase by up to 14% by 2030, 30% by the end of 2050, and 50% by the end of the century.

Moreover, forest fires harm the environment in other ways as well. Regarding the California fires, Payne said, “When (or if) winter rains finally come, they could lead to ridge erosion and debris flows,” noting that the post-fire cleanup process “will be messy, long and expensive.”

The conditions created by humans also make it difficult to deal with the repercussions of environmental disasters.

“Contemporary homes are full of plastics, synthetic materials and electronics that can be toxic” when they catch fire, Payne said.

How do forest fires affect wildlife?

Wildfires burn acres of land quickly and can have varying impacts on wildlife living at fire sites.

Impacts depend on the species of wildlife, their habitat requirements, and the severity and frequency of wildfires, according to an article published by North Carolina State University (NC).

Some species can escape quickly as the fire quickly sweeps through acres of land. “Some animals, especially those that are unable to move or are too slow to escape, are more vulnerable to the smoke and heat of wildfires,” the report explains.

Does this affect the environment in general?

It is possible. As wildfires change vegetation by thinning it, some wildlife can lose habitat, and the resulting wildlife movement can upset the balance of the local ecosystem in the area.

Take snakes as an example. There are about 33 species of snakes endemic to California.

Michael Starkey, a conservation biologist whose work focuses on snake conservation Al Jazeera said High temperatures and dry conditions make some areas uninhabitable for some species of snakes.

While some snakes could move away, other species could become extinct, Starkey said. This is a problem because snakes eat rodents that destroy crops for human consumption. This chain reaction can affect entire food systems.

California is also home to 700 species of vertebrates, which are simply animals with backbones and skeletons. This makes the state the most biodiverse in the United States, according to a March 2024 USDA article.

Unprecedented wildfires tore through California in 2020 and 2021, burning more than 4.2 million acres of land.

“Tragically, the wildfires killed or displaced nearly 3 billion animals. It made me wonder what was happening to our wildlife,” the USDA article quoted Jones, an ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service, as saying.

John Kane, an ecologist at the Pacific Southwest Research Station, said the spotted owl is a particular species of concern, according to the article. “Wildfire disasters can destroy ancient trees and dense forest patches that spotted owls depend on for nesting, roosting, and foraging.”