The Briefing
- An average of 70,000 wildfires blaze through the U.S. each year
- These fires destroy approximately 5.8 million acres of land on a yearly basis
- Over 43,000 fires have started across the U.S., burning 5 million acres of land as of Sept 3, 2021
30 Years of Wildfires in America
This summer, record-breaking droughts and relentless heat waves have fueled disastrous wildfires across the United States. It’s gotten so bad, the state of California has decided to shut down all national forests for two weeks to stop the spread.
But how disastrous has this year been compared to previous years? This graphic gives a historical look at the number of wildfires in America that have occurred each year since 1990, and the acres of forest land scorched during that period.
Total Wildland Fires and Acres from 1990 to 2020
In the U.S., an average of 70,000 wildfires burn through 5.8 million acres of land each year. But some years have been worse than others.
| Year | # of Fires | # of Acres Burned |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 66,481 | 4,621,621 |
| 1991 | 75,754 | 2,953,578 |
| 1992 | 87,394 | 2,069,929 |
| 1993 | 58,810 | 1,797,574 |
| 1994 | 79,107 | 4,073,579 |
| 1995 | 82,234 | 1,840,546 |
| 1996 | 96,363 | 6,065,998 |
| 1997 | 66,196 | 2,856,959 |
| 1998 | 81,043 | 1,329,704 |
| 1999 | 92,487 | 5,626,093 |
| 2000 | 92,250 | 7,393,493 |
| 2001 | 84,079 | 3,570,911 |
| 2002 | 73,457 | 7,184,712 |
| 2003 | 63,629 | 3,960,842 |
| 2004 | 65,461 | *8,097,880 |
| 2005 | 66,753 | 8,689,389 |
| 2006 | 96,385 | 9,873,745 |
| 2007 | 85,705 | 9,328,045 |
| 2008 | 78,979 | 5,292,468 |
| 2009 | 78,792 | 5,921,786 |
| 2010 | 71,971 | 3,422,724 |
| 2011 | 74,126 | 8,711,367 |
| 2012 | 67,774 | 9,326,238 |
| 2013 | 47,579 | 4,319,546 |
| 2014 | 63,312 | 3,595,613 |
| 2015 | 68,151 | 10,125,149 |
| 2016 | 67,743 | 5,509,995 |
| 2017 | 71,499 | 10,026,086 |
| 2018 | 58,083 | 8,767,492 |
| 2019 | 50,477 | 4,664,364 |
| 2020 | 58,950 | 10,122,336 |
| 2021* | 43,250 | 5,024,744 |
*note: 2021 figures as of September 3, 2021
One particularly bad year was 2006, which had over 96,000 fires and destroyed 9.9 million acres of land across the country. It was the year of the Esperanza Fire in California, which burned 40,000 acres and cost $9 million in damages.
2015 was also a devastating year, with over 10.1 million acres destroyed across the country–the worst year on record, in terms of acres burned.
Climate Change’s Role in Wildfires
Wildfires are only expected to worsen in the near future since warmer temperatures and drier climates allow the fires to grow quickly and intensely.
We’re already starting to see climate change impact the wildfire season. For instance, autumn is usually peak wildfire season for California, but this year, one of the largest fires on record started in mid-July, and is still burning as of the date of publication.
Editor’s note, September 20, 2021: In the post above, we said that California closed downed down all national parks for two weeks, starting August 31st. In fact, they closed down all national forests.
Where does this data come from?
Source: National Interagency Fire Center
Details: 2004 fires and acres do not include state lands for North Carolina.
