2015 is on track to be the worst U.S. wildfire season on record

Daily statistics 8/27/15 Number of new large fires 5 States currently reporting large fires: Number of active large firesTotal number includes full suppression and resource managed fires.25Total does not include individual fires within complexes. 66 California (11)Idaho (19)Montana (11)New Mexico (1) Oregon (10)Utah (2)Washington (12) Acres from active fires 1,696,874 Fires contained 6 Year-to-date statistics […]

Why are Brazil’s environmentalists being murdered? ‘Magnates buy off local politicians and policemen, and kill anyone who challenges their agricultural practices’

By Michael E. Miller 27 August 2015 (Washington Post) – The killers came from the forest, the very same forest Raimundo Santos Rodrigues so loved. The environmentalist had spent years defending one of the last pristine swathes of the eastern Amazon rain forest from loggers, miners and farmers. But his activism had earned him enemies […]

Wildfire statistics for the U.S. West, 26 August 2015

26 August 2015 (Desdemona Despair) – Here’s an update to last week’s post on wildfire data from the Western United States. Data from the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center (Fuels and Fire Danger [pdf]) show that Northwest wildfires continue to rage, with 200,000 acres (80,937 hectares) burned again this week – the Okanagan complex “remains the […]

Washington wildfires: It’s global warming, stupid

By Tamino22 August 2015 (Open Mind) – Here (shown as black dots) is the total acres burned by wildfire in Washington state each year, together with a blue dashed line showing the yearly average, since 2002. The red dashed line is the acres burned by wildfires that are burning in Washington state RIGHT NOW. That’s […]

Conservation NW Science Director evacuates ahead of Washington state forest fire – ‘The scale of need is way beyond our present effort’

By Dave Werntz25 August 2015 (Conservation NW) – Along with my wife and daughter, I evacuated last week from our home near Twisp. Our place is safe and sound for now, thanks in large part to heroic efforts from firefighters. While veritable armies have converged here to help from across the state and nation, most […]

Revealed: Attorney hounding climate scientists is covertly funded by coal industry – ‘He has been instrumental in orchestrating the attacks on climate scientists over the past decade’

By Lee Fang25 August 2015 (The Intercept) – Christopher Horner, an attorney who claims that the earth is cooling, is known within the scientific community for hounding climate change researchers with relentless investigations and public ridicule, often deriding scientists as “communists” and frauds. Horner is a regular guest on Fox News and CNN, and has […]

When firefighters speak out on global warming, we ought to listen – ‘30-year, 40-year veterans have never seen this before’

By Char Miller24 August 2015 (The Guardian) – Climate change is worsening the fires that ravage many parts of America each year. Grime-streaked firefighters battling one of the 167 active wildfires currently scorching portions of the US west will tell you as much. What they have encountered on the firelines in the past few years […]

Smoke from Lake Baikal inferno descends on Eastern Siberia

By Lynn Jenner24 August 2015 (NASA) – Lake Baikal in Eastern Russia, the deepest and oldest lake in the world, is home to 20 percent of the world’s unfrozen fresh water.  As of 24 August 2015 this lake is facing a crisis with 36 fires equaling an area of 138,500 hectares (342,240 acres) currently burning […]

Washington wildfire is now largest in state history – ‘It’s only August 24th. We could see this go clear to the first of November.’

By Donna Blankinship and Brian Skoloff24 August 2015 OKANOGAN, Washington (AP) – The massive fire burning in north-central Washington is now the largest in state history. The Okanogan Complex of wildfires has surpassed last year’s Carlton Complex blazes, fire spokesman Rick Isaacson said Monday morning. The Okanogan Complex was measured overnight at just over 400 […]

Brazil’s special forces wage uphill fight against Amazon destroyers – ‘These people are causing incalculable environmental damage’

By Vincent Bevins10 July 2015 (Los Angeles Times) – Carrying guns and wearing jungle fatigues, the three men don’t look like scientists as they push their way through the thick foliage of the Amazon. They’re trying to reach a clearing they’ve seen on satellite images. When they finally get there, they discover that the largest […]

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