2023 wildfires are reigniting in western Canada after 'overwintering'

THROUGHOUT THE REMAINDER OF OUR HOUR HERE. THOUSANDS OF FAMILIES IN CANADA ARE NOW BEING URGED TO EVACUATE AS WILDFIRES ARE RAMPING UP. YEAH, THAT’S SMOKE IS BLOWING SOUTH INTO THE UNITED STATES. HERE’S WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IN SOUTH DAKOTA. THAT’S PRETTY THICK THERE, THAT LAYER OF HAZE. SO METEOROLOGISTS HEATHER WALDMAN JOINS US RIGHT NOW. SO HEATHER, THE FIRES HERE ARE KIND OF UNIQUE. THEY ARE BECAUSE A LOT OF THEM ACTUALLY ALMOST ALL OF THEM, AT LEAST IN BRITISH COLUMBIA, STARTED LAST YEAR, 2023 WAS CANADA’S WORST WILDFIRE YEAR ON RECORD. AND THAT’S BY A LOT. AN ESTIMATED 36 TO 39 MILLION ACRES BURNED JUST LAST YEAR. THE PREVIOUS ANNUAL RECORD FOR THE ENTIRE COUNTRY OF CANADA WAS 16 MILLION ACRES. NOW, THOSE FIRES THAT PRODUCE, SMOKE, PRODUCE SMOKE THAT MOVES SOUTH INTO THE U.S. IN WAVES THROUGH THE SUMMER. YOU MAY REMEMBER IN JUNE INTO JULY BY THEN, AS WE WENT INTO WINTER, OF COURSE, MUCH OF WESTERN CANADA SEES SNOW. THAT’S WHAT THE SATELLITE LOOKED LIKE IN FEBRUARY. BUT WESTERN CANADA’S UNIQUE FOREST VEGETATION ALLOWED MANY OF THE FIRES THAT STARTED IN BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALBERTA TO KEEP BURNING UNDERNEATH THAT SNOW. THESE FIRES BURN IN DEEP ORGANIC LAYERS, OFTEN SPHAGNUM MOSSES, PEAT AND AND YOU CAN HAVE SNOW ON THE SURFACE. AND THIS FIRES CONTINUES TO SMOLDER ALL WINTER LONG. AND THEN SPRING COMES. THE SNOW MELTS, FIRES POP TO THE SURFACE, AND THEY GOT SOMEWHERE TO SPREAD. THEY DO. THAT WAS DOCTOR MIKE FLANAGAN. HE’S A PROFESSOR OF WILDLAND FIRES IN BRITISH COLUMBIA. HE SAYS THAT ALL BUT ONE FIRE BURNING RIGHT NOW IN THAT TERRITORY IS AN OVERWINTERING FIRE FROM LAST YEAR THAT HAS MADE THIS MONTH MUCH MORE ACTIVE THAN AVERAGE. BUT IT’S NOT QUITE AS ACTIVE AS WHAT SOME SAW LAST YEAR. THE SATELLITE PICTURE WAS FROM A FEW DAYS AGO, BUT BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MANY FIRES ON THE LANDSCAPE ALREADY BURNING, AND BECAUSE WE HAVE AN ONGOING DROUGHT, I EXPECT THE SPRING TO BE VERY ACTIVE IN THE WEST. AND OF COURSE, THAT’S WESTERN CANADA THAT HE’S TALKING ABOUT. NOW THAT MAY MEAN MORE ROUNDS OF IMPACTFUL SMOKE FOR THE U.S., WHICH YOU’RE LOOKING AT RIGHT NOW, IS AIR QUALITY READINGS FROM EARLIER THIS AFTERNOON. THIS IS FROM PURPLE AIR. THE DOTS INDICATED THERE IN RED INDICATE THAT AIR QUALITY WHERE IT MAY BE UNHEALTHY FOR SOME. SO THESE PEAT FOREST FIRES ALSO COULD BE RELEASING A LOT MORE CARBON COMPARED TO A REGULAR FOREST FIRE. NOW IT’S UNCLEAR HOW THAT MAY IMPACT GLOBAL TEMPERATURES, BUT FLANAGAN SAYS THAT A WARMING CLIMATE DUE TO HUMAN CARBON EMISSIONS INCREASES THE RISK FOR MORE LARGE FIRES IN THE FUTURE. THE DRIER THE FUELS, THE EASIER IT IS FOR FIRE TO START, THE EASIER IT IS FOR A FIRE TO SPREAD, AND IT MEANS MORE FUEL IS AVAILABLE TO BURN VEGETATION, WHICH LEADS TO HIGHER INTENSITY FIRES THAT ARE DIFFICULT TO IMPOSSIBLE TO EXTINGUISH THROUGH DIRECT ATTACK. OF COURSE, THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT EVERY WILDFIRE SEASON WILL BE ACTIVE. WE’VE SEEN A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF THAT HERE IN CALIFORNIA, WITH MORE THAN 4 MILLION ACRES BURNING IN 2020. BUT IN THE LAST TWO YEARS, WE’VE SEEN ABOUT 300,000 ACRES BURNING. BACK TO YOU. A REALLY NICE DROP OFF THE LAST COUPLE YEARS. WE LIKE TO KEEP IT THAT WAY FOR AS LONG AS WE CAN. THANKS, HEATHER. YEAH, IT JUST STUNNING THAT THIS CAN SMOLDER FOR THAT LONG UNDER SNOW. YEAH. AND I HAD NO IDEA. IT’S ALL BECAUSE OF THAT LAYER OF PEAT THAT SITS. YOU KNOW HOW FAR DOWN IT CAN KEEP BURNING THAT VEGETATION