Wildfires that have torn through the homes of people in Los Angeles this week could end up making climate change worse, experts have warned.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has said the wildfires – which killed 24 people by Monday and forced 100,000 to evacuate – could be the most devastating natural disaster in US history.
On Monday, dangerously high winds were expected to return to the city, harming efforts to extinguish two massive wildfires that have destroyed thousands of buildings.
The wildfires also hold the potential to create a “vicious cycle” that worsens climate change, warns Dr Kirsten Lees, professor of Environmental Science & Geography at the University of Derby.
Speaking to Yahoo News, Dr Lees said that more frequent and severe wildfires can cause a larger release of carbon from vegetation being burnt. “Intensifying fire regimes, even in ecosystems which are adapted to regular fires, can contribute to a vicious cycle of worsening climate change,” she said.
“All vegetation takes up carbon as it grows, and when it burns, this stored carbon is rapidly lost to the atmosphere, adding to the concentrations of greenhouse gases warming the planet. This, in turn, exacerbates hotter, drier conditions which enable wildfires.”
How much CO2 do wildfires add to the atmosphere?
Wildfires have added 5.3 billion tonnes of CO2 to the atmosphere in 2022, according to Carbon Brief.
That’s more than large industrialised nations – in fact, more than any country contributed in 2022 except China.
As wildfires increase in areas such as the United States, the amount of CO2 released also increases.
Wildfire devastates the Pacific Palisades area (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
In some cases, the wildfires can also change the local area, meaning vegetation can struggle to grow back.
“In extreme cases severe fires can also lead to longer-term changes in ecosystems as vegetation communities struggle to recover,” Dr Less explained.
In recent years, wildfires have grown in intensity in multiple areas, according to recent research.
NASA said in a study last year: “Wildfire is essential to the health of forests, clearing undergrowth and brush and making way for new plant life. In recent decades, however, the number, severity, and overall size of wildfires have increased, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“Contributing factors include extended drought, past fire management strategies, invasive species, and the spread of residential communities into formerly less developed areas.”
Why are wildfires increasing?
Climate change is contributing to wildfires for several reasons – including making conditions drier, promoting forest growth and even making lightning more likely.
Dr Renuka Thakore, from the University of Central Lancashire, told Yahoo News that research indicates that nearly all of the increase in wildfire-affected areas in California over the past 50 years is linked to human-caused climate change.
“Between 1971 and 2021, human-caused climate change caused a staggering 172% increase in burned areas,” she said. “This figure shot up to 320% from 1996 to 2021, underscoring its profound impact on wildfire frequency and severity.
“As climate change worsens, we can expect more wildfires affecting areas like California. Studies indicate that human-caused climate change has significantly increased conditions like a deficit in how much water vapour is in the air, driven by higher temperatures and increased dryness. These all create the perfect conditions for wildfires to start and spread rapidly.”
A view shows a home on a hill over a damaged building after residents fled from the Eaton Fire, one of six simultaneous blazes that have swept across Los Angeles County, in Altadena, California, U.S., January 11, 2025. REUTERS/Ringo Chiu
A study by the University of Exeter last year reveals that carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from forest fires had risen 60% in recent years worldwide.
The emissions are linked to the ‘hot-dry conditions seen in heatwaves and droughts.
Climate change is also driving increased rates of growth, which provides more ‘fuel’ for fires.
The carbon combustion rate, a measure of fire severity based on how much carbon is emitted per unit of area burned, increased by almost 50% across forests globally between 2001 and 2023.
Could this pose long-term problems?
Out-of-control forest fires and wildfires hold the potential to disrupt the ability of forests to store carbon, which is essential to hitting the world’s climate goals.
Forests are of worldwide importance for carbon storage, with their growth helping to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and reduce rates of global warming.
They also play a crucial role in meeting international climate targets.
Reforestation and afforestation schemes are being planned and used to remove carbon from the atmosphere and offset human CO2 emissions.
The success of these schemes relies on carbon being stored in forests permanently, and wildfires threaten that.