Canadian wildfires burning land at record pace

This is a graphic comparing the average area of land burned in a Canadian wildfire season with the amount burned so far in 2023.

The graphic begins by showing an orange shape equal to the area of land burned in an average Canadian wildfire season: 24,600 square kilometers. For reference, Toronto is 630 square kilometers.

“During an average wildfire season in Canada, 24,600 square kilometers of land will burn. But this year is different. Four times as much land has burned.”

The average area graphic is followed by a shape representing the land area burned by fires so far this year. The area is so far that it stretches outside the window screen.

“So far in 2023, more than 101,800 square kilometers of land has burned – and still counting.

That’s more land than any other fire season since 1990, the earliest for which data is available. And the season is barely halfway through. These have been some of the fastest-moving fires in the country’s history.”

As the reader scrolls down the page, the area is broken up by province.

“Quebec 43,500 km sq; The majority of land burned is in Quebec, where fires are still burning from last year’s fire season. This is unusual. On average, in the 10-year period up to 2022, Quebec ranked sixth among Canada's provinces and territories for area burned, according to CIFFC data.

Alberta 17,300 km sq; Alberta's fire season exploded in early May, before vegetation had a chance to start growing again after the winter.”

“British Columbia 12,900 km sq; British Columbia has been battling its biggest-ever wildfire, the Donnie Creek fire in the north-east, since early May and the blaze now occupies an area larger than the province of Prince Edward Island.

Wildfire activity is ramping up across the rest of the province due to widespread drought, hot weather and frequent lightning storms.

Northwest Territories 9,500 km sq; The Northwest Territories, like much of Canada, are experiencing an unusually hot, dry summer and are unable to call on firefighters from other provinces and territories because those crews are already deployed elsewhere.

Saskatchewan 9,200 km sq; Hot weather caused a rapid spring snowmelt across Saskatchewan and much of Canada's prairies, leaving conditions ripe for wildfires to spread quickly.”

More orange shapes representing land burned continue down the page but do not include descriptions like the provinces above.

Ontario 3,900 km sq Parks Canada 3,500 km sq Manitoba 900 km sq Yukon 700 km sq Newfoundland and Labrador 200 km sq

“Nova Scotia 200 km sq; The temperate maritime province of Nova Scotia rarely experiences destructive wildfires but faced its largest blaze in recorded history this summer.”