The 2023 wildfire season was Canada’s worst on record . High temperatures and widespread drought fuelled over 6,600 fires, burning a record-breaking 18.4 million hectares , an area more than double the size of New Brunswick.
The fires emitted nearly 480 million tonnes of carbon , five times the emissions of an average season, turning the skies hazy and orange and blanketing much of North America in wildfire smoke for weeks. Many regions of Canada experienced over 40 days where air pollution concentrations exceeded the World Health Organization’s air quality guidelines , leading to periods where Canada had some of the worst air quality in the world . With 2023 behind us the question now is: will 2024 be as bad? Many of the fires in northern regions continued to burn throughout the winter.
These fires, known as “holdover” fires, along with Canada’s warmest winter on record and extreme drought in many regions , fuelled an early start to the 2024 wildfire season . This year, as of May 22, 2024, there have already been over 1,200 fires, burning nearly 400,000 hectares and causing multiple evacuation orders in northern British Columbia. Smoke from the fires near Fort Nelson triggered air quality alerts across Alberta and the Midwestern United States.
Most of Canada is forecasted to have above average “fire weather” conditions — hot, dry and windy — throughout the summer, due in large part to the low snow levels, ongoing dry conditions and above average temperature.
