Anthropocene: defined as the current geological age, viewed as the period during which human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment. Some geologists argue that the Anthropocene began with the Industrial Revolution.
As the dominant summer sun sets over the peaks of the Rocky Mountains, it casts an amber glow across the vast expanse of Colorado. However, a more ominous presence lingers in the air—a presence of wildfire and its evolving relationship with our changing climate. In recent years, Colorado has become a battleground where the forces of nature, exacerbated by human activity, collide in a fiery dance that threatens both landscapes, livelihoods, and wildlife.
Wildfires are not a new phenomenon in Colorado. Historically, these fires have been part of a natural cycle, rejuvenating forests and clearing out old growth to make way for new life. However, what we are witnessing today is not merely a continuation of this natural cycle, but a marked intensification and frequency of wildfires, driven in large part by climate change. The top ten largest wildfires in Colorado have all taken place since 2002, and the most destructive fire, the Marshall Fire, took place in 2022.
This year in Eagle County, the wildfire risk outlook has been seemingly positive. We’ve had no major wildfires since the season started, in part due to a peculiarly moist and cool June, courtesy of Tropical Storm Alberto and a southerly flow of moist air. However, we’re not in the clear, as the National Interagency Fire Center predicts a weak monsoon season, which usually starts in July. Bottom line, an unusually wet June should not absolve our wildfire concern.
Exemplifying this, in our neighboring Lake County, a wildfire recently burned more than 700 acres of U.S. Forest Service Land south of Leadville in the Interlaken Historic District. The fire burned for two weeks, and more than 200 fire personnel, helicopters, and air tankers were enlisted daily at Interlaken. Thankfully, the wildfire was contained by the end of June. Investigators found that the wildfire was caused by a small campfire left unattended, which is unfortunately all too common. In the U.S., nearly 85% of fires are caused by humans, typically the result of campfires, burning debris, equipment use and malfunction, discarding cigarettes, and arson. In our increasingly arid climate, we all have a responsibility to prevent potentially catastrophic wildfires. The U.S. Department of the Interior has ten easy tips to do so.
Wildfire prevention and mitigation are evermore important in the face of climate change. Climate change in Colorado has already contributed to warmer temperatures, decreased snowpack, and reduced water availability. Future outlooks predict that Colorado will become even hotter and drier, increasing the severity, frequency, and extent of wildfires. The Climate Action Collaborative (CAC) recently created carbon sequestration reports for Eagle County, and in doing so, found that our healthy forests and other landscapes sequester roughly 202,347 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year. According to the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalency Calculator, that’s equivalent to taking 48,159 gas-powered vehicles off the road for one year, which is extremely significant. The report also revealed that wildfires occurring between 2019 to 2021 emitted roughly 84,942 metric tons of carbon dioxide, equivalent to the energy use of 11,077 homes in one year. While healthy landscapes do a fantastic job of sequestering carbon, landscape disturbance, such as wildfire, releases stored carbon very quickly. The nuts and bolts here are that climate change is a feedback loop, wherein the hotter and drier our climate gets, the more wildfires will occur, which release more carbon that contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. We must support the health and resiliency of our local landscapes, such as forests, to sequester carbon.
However, wildfire is a nuanced topic, and it is important to delineate that not all fire is bad. In fact, controlled fire is actually good for the landscape, if practiced correctly. For many millennia, Indigenous cultures have been practicing cultural burning, which is the “intentional lighting of smaller, controlled fires to provide a desired cultural service, such as promoting the health of vegetation and animals that provide food, clothing, ceremonial items and more”. After centuries of settler colonial fire suppression, which resulted in catastrophic mega-fires, the Forest Service now implements prescribed burning to reduce hazardous fuels, mitigate pests and disease, and more.
If you’re wondering what you can do to reduce the risk of wildfire and protect your home and family, homeowners and HOAs should look no further. Eagle County’s Office of Mitigation and Fire Protection has a REALFire program, which provides free property assessments to educate residents on how their homes and landscaping may be susceptible to wildfire and specific ways to reduce wildfire threat. The CAC encourages community members to sign up for a free assessment.
To close it out, the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires underscores the urgent need for our community to mitigate the risk of wildfire, strengthen our resiliency measures, and address the root cause of increased wildfire - climate change. Addressing these challenges is an all-hands-on-deck effort, and the CAC is your local resource to learn how to get involved.
Gina McCrackin is the Climate Action Collaborative Manager at Walking Mountains. The Climate Action Collaborative is working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Eagle County 50% by 2030 and 80% by 2050.
