Background Articles

A study reveals that large wildfires in Canada's boreal forests cause prolonged ground warming for over a decade, with implications for climate change feedback loops.

Climate change is affecting nearly every aspect of life, said Gwich’in Council International board member Evon Taa’ąįį Peter, who is Neetsaii Gwich’in and Koyukon Athabascan. For one thing, he told ICT, more than 60% of the forest lands of the Alaskan Gwich’in nation have burned in wildfires in the past 10 years. As of July 10, 582,000 acres had burned this year in 328 wildfires in Alaska. “I couldn’t open the windows of my house for seven days straight, I think, because it would just let smoke billow into my home, which was already too unhealthy for us to be outside. So most of us just had to remain indoors…so there’s definitely very real dramatic and in-our-face impacts from climate change across the state, even in (an urban area like) Fairbanks,” Peter said.

Despite a general decrease in wildfires across B.C., the Dogtooth fire near Golden has destroyed structures and prompted evacuations, contrasting with the province's improving situation.

Climate change is affecting all aspects of the northern housing industry, from the structures themselves to the transportation of materials. One way to fix the issue is to put more reliance on northern community-based knowledge..

Port Alberni bans all outdoor fires due to a heatwave and high fire risk, with fines for non-compliance until October 31, 2024.

The B.C. Wildfire Service monitors out-of-control fires amid rising temperatures, with 20 fires classified as out of control and heat warnings across the province.