To Find the Root of Canada's Wildfire Emissions, Look Below the Trees: Study
Researchers found below-ground carbon produced about 76% of emissions from Canada’s 2023 wildfires, with total releases estimated at 554 million tonnes.
- On Monday, a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters revealed that about 76 per cent of planet-warming emissions from Canada's record 2023 wildfires came from soil and peat rather than burning trees.
- McMaster University researchers found that below-ground carbon accounted for about 76 per cent of the 554 million tonnes of total emissions released during the 2023 fire season.
- Climate change is increasing wildfire severity by lowering water tables and accelerating permafrost retreat, making larger caches of soil carbon vulnerable to burning, noted Werner Kurz, a retired Natural Resources Canada scientist.
- Findings suggest intense wildfires are exposing vast carbon stores, creating a feedback loop where fires release emissions that drive further warming and increase smoke risk for North American cities.
- Ontario currently faces a historic 2026 fire season, with some blazes edging into the carbon-rich Hudson Bay Lowlands, the world's second-largest peat complex, raising concerns about ancient carbon release.
38 Articles
38 Articles
Most of the carbon emitted during the record 2023 forest fires in Canada was not from the burning of trees, but from peat and soil.
The Toronto Star
To find the root of Canada’s wildfire emissions, look below the trees: study
Most of the carbon emitted by Canada's record 2023 wildfires came not from burning trees, but from peat and soil, according to a new study that warns a warming climate is making the country's vast underground carbon deposits increasingly vulnerable…
Winnipeg Free Press
To find the root of Canada's wildfire emissions, look below the trees: study
A new study of the planet-warming emissions released during Canada's record 2023 wildfires suggests the majority came not from trees, but from soil and peat.
Climate models may be missing massive carbon emissions from boreal wildfires
Northern wildfires may be more dangerous for the climate than they appear. Researchers found that fires in boreal forests can burn deep into peat soils, releasing ancient carbon stored for hundreds or thousands of years. These slow, smoldering fires often look small from space, causing climate models to underestimate their emissions.
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