Northwest Territories on track to beat 20214 record for area burned and carbon emitted

By Liny Lamberink
CBC News
August 28, 2023
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada West

Wildfires in the N.W.T have emitted 97 megatonnes of carbon into the air so far this year — 277 times more than what was caused by humans in the territory back in 2021. Mark Parrington, at the European Union’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, said the N.W.T. has contributed the most of all the provinces and territories to Canada’s total wildfire emissions. …The N.W.T.’s vast boreal forest usually sequesters more carbon than it emits — except during big fire years. Up until now, 2014 has been considered the territory’s worst wildfire year. According to CAMS data up until Aug. 23, the current wildfire season has not quite eclipsed 2014 in terms of emissions. According to N.W.T. Fire, 2.96 million hectares of land have burned in fires so far this year, but it’s calculating an updated figure. The agency said the territory is well on its way to beating the record set back in 2014 of 3.4 million hectares burned.

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