A new study suggests that climate change is affecting the number and severity of wildfires in the West, including in Colorado. KRCC's Eliza Densmore reports.
The study is called "The Age of Western Wildfires" and was released by the research group Climate Central. The main finding is that rising temperatures in the spring and summer, associated with climate change, are linked to larger and more frequent burns. The study says the Western wildfire season is two and half months longer than it was four decades ago, and since the 1970s, the average number of fires over 1,000 acres has doubled in Colorado. The report says the 2012 season was the most damaging on record in the West.
A summary of the study and links to the full version can be found here.
