Firefighers at the Poomacha, Calif., Fire in 2007. (IMAGE)

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Firefighers at the Poomacha, Calif., Fire in 2007.

Caption

In an analysis of 20 years of wildfire records led by researchers at UMass Amherst and the University of Colorado-Boulder, they found human-started fires accounted for 84 percent of all wildfires, exhibiting 'a remarkable influence' on modern US wildfire regimes. Further, humans are expanding the fire niche into more locations and environments with historically low lightning-strike density.

Credit

Public domain. FEMA/Andrea Booher

Usage Restrictions

None

License

Licensed content

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.