Geographer: Drought, Fires Impact Ability of Amazon to Hold Carbon Dioxide

From the Source:

"Fires in the Amazon could jeopardize the forest's ability to soak up carbon dioxide emissions even as deforestation there slows down, according to a Penn State geographer. In an invited commentary in the Feb. 6 edition of Nature, Jennifer Balch, assistant professor of geography, noted that dry weather conditions, coupled with fires, may mean that over time the Amazon forest will lose its ability to take in more carbon dioxide than it releases — going from being a carbon sink to a source."

Above: "Fires in the Amazon, such as this pasture blaze in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, may swamp the forest's ability to take in more carbon dioxide than land use releases, according to Penn State geographer Jennifer Balch." - Penn State News

California's Drought Heightens Fear of Fire Season

From the Source:

"There is no relief in sight from the historic drought ravaging every corner of California, and where there's drought, there's fire. In the thick of winter and normally wet months, 545 fires have broken out so far this year, burning 1,142 acres.

That is a staggering 330 percent increase in fires over the same Jan. 1 to Feb. 15 period last year and a 150 percent jump in burned acreage...

Current conditions are as severe as during the hottest summer months, and Cal Fire is bracing for the worst. It has already brought in 125 additional firefighters, who normally come on board when fire season starts in late May in the North and in June in Southern California...

There is enough water to fight fires now, [Capt. Michael] Mohler said, but he added a note of warning to the state’s residents and urged them to conserve supplies. 
We’re reminding California residents that not only is it important to save water for the environment and human consumption but for firefighting,' he said."

Above: "Firefighters being deployed as wildfires burn through the foothills in Azusa, Calif., in January." - Al-Jazeera America

Western Wildfire Season 'Likely to Set a Record'

From the Source:

"The number of wildfires has increased over the years. In the 1980s, wildfires burned on average 2.98 million acres a year in the U.S. However, between 2003 and 2012, an average of 7.26 million acres burned each year.

The average length of the annual fire season has grown by 78 days over the last four decades.

Also almost certain to grow is the cost of battling wildfires. National costs have averaged $1.8 billion annually for the past five years, and the 2012 fire season was among the most expensive on record for many regions and states, according to Headwater Economics, a nonprofit research group...

'Because they aren't getting any water, the trees are in danger and won't survive, creating more fuel for fires,' [Malcolm North, a research ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service] said.

North added that the level of destruction this year's fire season brings will depend a lot on luck.

'All we can do is hope for more rain and hope we get some," he said. "But we've had years of dry conditions, so it will take a lot of rain for a long time to prevent the fires.'"

Above: "Firefighters monitor the Colby Fire on Highway 39, January 17, 2014, in Azusa, California." Courtesy of CNBC.

Devastating Australian Brushfires as Seen from Space

From the Source:

"Bushfires are continuing to rage across parts of Australia’s state of Victoria today despite the arrival of milder conditions.

You can see them in the image [on the left] from NASA’s Aqua satellite. Massive plumes of smoke stream from fires burning in the eastern part of the state, as well as just north of the city of Melbourne. Red dots mark spots where the satellite sensor detected fire...

The region has been experiencing hot and windy conditions that have raised the fire risk in Victoria to its highest level since 2009, when fires killed 173 people."

Above: "NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this view of bushfires blazing in the Australian state of Victoria today. (Source: NASA)" - Discover

Technology Tracks Crew Through the Fog of Wildfire (AUDIO)

From the Source:

"For crews fighting wildfires, the ability to get accurate information quickly is crucial. A breakdown in communication was one factor in a fire that killed 19 firefighters in Arizona last year, and in the deaths of two Florida firefighters in Arizona in 2011.

Florida officials hope to address some of those communication problems with a new tracking system designed to keep tabs on crews in the field.

The accident helped spur state officials to roll out an "asset tracking system" on Florida's bulldozers, trucks and other vehicles used to fight fires. The system uses radio tracking to follow the equipment, and a computer program then overlays the information onto satellite imagery, says Jim Karels, director of the Florida Forest Service..."

"'When everything is happening ... a lot of times the firefighters try very hard to keep their communications very short because they know the radio traffic is heavy,' he adds. 'And sometimes by doing that they miss the opportunities to thoroughly communicate what they need to.'

The tracking system, on the other hand, can transmit important information in real time, without the need for voice communication."

Above: "Crews work a controlled burn in Geneva, Fla., in December. The state's forest service has rolled out a system to track equipment during fires, and hopes it can eventually be used to pinpoint firefighters, too." - NPR

Conservation is No Joke in Drought-Ridden California

The case for more drought-tolerant (and Firewise) landscaping has never been clearer. Hawaii is also suffering from drought conditions, so the lessons from California can certainly apply here. 

From the Source:

"Landscape irrigation accounts for more than 50 percent of water used by a single-family residence, according to Sarah Foley, deputy director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council.

'This is why so much effort is being made now on reduction of outdoor use,' she said in an email to Al Jazeera.

'That’s really the biggest area that needs to be changed,” said Brostrom, of the state’s Department of Water Resources. “It hasn’t been emphasized enough. People will think of taking shorter showers, but when sprinklers go off, they’re the equivalent of 20 shower heads in their yards.'" 

Above: "Low-flow shower heads and shorter showers have been common for three decades."

Half a Decade After Black Saturday, Towns are Still Rebuilding

A very engaging, interactive, and creative webpage detailing the long-term physical and psychological effects of catastrophic wildfires on communities in Australia. Definitely worth spending some time scrolling through!

From the Source:

"TODAY the Herald Sun begins a series of reports on Victoria's bushfire-affected communities five years on from Black Saturday. We speak to survivors who recount their courageous stories, meet a town that is rising from the ashes, and remember those we lost."

"The Herald Sun can reveal that, five years on:
*Doctors and psychologists have reported anecdotal evidence of a rise in suicides, alcohol and drug abuse and addictive behaviour such as gambling by traumatised bushfire survivors.

*Family violence reports increased in traumatised fire communities including Marysville, Flowerdale and Kinglake.

*There is unhappiness in some areas about block buybacks, which weren’t available until the change of government in 2010. Residents such as Phil Fennell in Kinglake West worried about a lack of maintenance on the two empty blocks either side of his house. He was also concerned about any negative impact on his property price.

*Many houses are not complete, as survivors ran out of money before they could apply the finishing touches, and increased fireproofing drove up construction costs.

*20 of the 67 recommendations from the bushfire royal commission have not yet been completed.

*Only three fire refuges have been completed — none in the Kinglake or Marysville regions."

Above: "An aerial of Marysville after the fires. Picture: Mark Smith" - Herald Sun News

Brushfires in Australia Deadlier, More Destructive and Worse to Come (VIDEO)

From the Source:

"BUSHFIRES are almost twenty times more deadly and eighty times more destructive than a century ago - and experts warn the devastation will continue to grow as urban sprawl pushes further into bushland. Exclusive analysis by News Corp Australia has revealed the true extent of the devastating toll caused by decades of bushfires.

In today's money, the combined damage caused by bushfires over the past 90 years is almost $7 billion.

And $2.6 billion of this damage was caused in the past 13 years."

Above: "Harmful effect ... Sydney’s CBD is shrouded in a haze of smoke from bushfires in Springwood, Winmalee and Lithgow in the Blue Mountains last October. Picture: Getty Source: Getty Images"