Millions Of People At Risk Of Poor Air Quality Due To Canada Wildfire

The lives of millions of residents in the American Midwest and Northeast are at risk due to the smoke coming from the Canada wildfires.

According to a report of the NBC News Weather Unit, the health of the public could be adversely affected because of the Canada wildfires as there were 127 million people who were under air quality alerts, while 79 million others were under heat alerts at about 7 p.m. ET.

This was due to the smoke from Canada that blankets the region following the 23 new fires and 491 active fires burning across the country.

The report cited the data from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center stating that eight million hectares or around 19.7 million acres have burned in 2022.

It also said that there have been more than 3,000 fires in the country this year.

The Canadian fire office said that not all the active fires were deemed as out of control.

Data have showed that of the 491 fires, 249 were deemed as out of control, 87 were "being held," and 155 were considered as under control.

Jet stream

According to NBC News, the jet stream could be the reason behind the Canadian wildfires and even the scorching heat being experienced in Texas.

Experts said this observation has raised questions about how it shapes extreme weather events.

The report explained that the jet stream is a ribbon of air that encircles the Northern Hemisphere at high altitudes and that it drives pressure changes that determine weather across North America.

The jet stream's wavy pattern creates areas of high and low pressure, the report pointed out.

"In recent months, the jet stream's patterns trapped and stalled a ridge of high pressure over northern Canada, which caused a heat wave and primed the landscape for the wildfires that later sent smoke pouring into the Midwest and the eastern U.S.," said the report.

In relation to global warming

Meanwhile, a New York Times report said the smokes coming from the ongoing blazes in Canada have already reached Europe, drifting over parts of northern Portugal, Spain and France.

Based on previous studies, heat and drought associated with global warming are the major reasons behind the number of fires and their intensity.

So far, Canada has the world's largest intact forest ecosystem, and many parts of the country have recently experienced drought and high heat.

Research showed that this could make trees vulnerable to fire that will later dry out dead grass, pine needles and any other material on the forest floor.

The Canadian government already declared a "national preparedness level 5" to address the increasing number of wildfires, according to CBS News, further nothing that firefighters from the United States, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa would help in combatting the blaze.