Climate change more than doubled the likelihood of extreme fire weather conditions in eastern Canada

The research finds that human-induced climate change significantly increased the intensity and probability of extreme fire weather in eastern Canada in 2023, particularly in Québec, where the cumulative severity of the fire season was approximately 50% more intense and at least seven times more likely to occur.

• In the current climate, the intense fire weather observed between May and July 2023 is considered a moderately extreme event with a 4-5% annual probability, meaning it is expected to occur once every 20-25 years.
• Human-induced climate change increased the cumulative severity of the 2023 fire season in Québec up to the end of July by approximately 50% and made seasons of this severity at least seven times more likely.
• Peak fire weather intensity increased by about 20% due to human-induced climate change, and such peak events are now at least twice as likely to occur.
• The extreme fire weather was driven by human-induced increases in temperature and decreases in humidity, which were further compounded in 2023 by unusually low precipitation.
• The 2023 wildfires caused significant societal impacts, including at least 17 direct fatalities, the evacuation of over 150,000 people, and damage to at least 200 structures. Air quality was severely degraded across North America, with New York City reaching a hazardous AQI of 341 on June 7th.

APA

World Weather Attribution (2023). Climate change more than doubled the likelihood of extreme fire weather conditions in eastern Canada. https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-more-than-doubled-the-likelihood-of-extreme-fire-weather-conditions-in-eastern-canada/

Chicago

World Weather Attribution. Climate change more than doubled the likelihood of extreme fire weather conditions in eastern Canada. 2023. https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-more-than-doubled-the-likelihood-of-extreme-fire-weather-conditions-in-eastern-canada/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Weather Attribution |title=Climate change more than doubled the likelihood of extreme fire weather conditions in eastern Canada |date=22 August 2023 |url=https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-more-than-doubled-the-likelihood-of-extreme-fire-weather-conditions-in-eastern-canada/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldweatherattribution2023climate, author = {{World Weather Attribution}}, title = {{Climate change more than doubled the likelihood of extreme fire weather conditions in eastern Canada}}, institution = {World Weather Attribution}, year = {2023}, month = aug, url = {https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-more-than-doubled-the-likelihood-of-extreme-fire-weather-conditions-in-eastern-canada/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }