BC Wildfire Season Well Below Average in 2022, but a Dry September Could Change That

BC Forests Minister Katrine Conroy is reporting that it has been a below-average wildfire season in the province “so far” this year. Conroy noted that 93% of this season’s wildfires have been extinguished or are under control. However, high fire risks are forecast for September.

Conroy says that the number of wildfires and the area they have burned since April are in close proximity of the 20-year average, with 1,355 fires having burned 430 kilometers so far this year. That in comparison to last year when the province was under a heat-dome weather event, where at this time last year there had been 1,515 wildfires and 8,650 square kilometers burned.

Neil McLoughlin, a BC Wildfire Service spokesperson, says up to 75% of BC wildfires were caused by lightning this season, with 98,000 strikes recorded in August alone. McLoughlin added that warm, dry weather is forecast to continue through September, which will keep fire risks high in the province’s southwest and northeast regions.