Research shows areas affected by severe wildfire actually speeds up snow melt and ability to reclaim that water during dry season’s increasing drought

FILE PHOTO: A tree engulfed in flames is seen during the Creek Fire in Tollhouse, California, U.S. September 8, 2020. REUTERS/Stephen Lam/File Photo

Luke 21:25-26 “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

Important Takeaways:

  • Wildfires are increasingly burning California’s snowy landscapes and colliding with winter droughts to shrink California’s snowpack
  • A new study shows that midwinter dry spells lead to dramatic losses of winter snowpack in burned areas
  • The early pandemic years overlapped with some of California’s worst wildfires on record, creating haunting, orange-tinted skies and wide swathes of burned landscape. Some of the impacts of these fires are well known, including drastic declines in air quality, and now a new study shows how these wildfires combined with midwinter drought conditions to accelerate snowmelt.
  • The enhanced snowmelt midwinter creates challenges for forecasting water availability from the natural snowpack reservoir. During the winter months, water managers need to leave room in reservoirs to prevent flooding; this means that earlier snowmelt may not be captured for later use in the dry season.
  • This study really highlights the importance of bringing fire back onto our landscape in the sense that we need fire — good fire is the answer to our wildfire problem,” Hatchett says. “Bringing a more natural regime of fire, through prescribed and cultural fire, back onto our landscape will help reduce the likelihood of future severe fire.”

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