Early snowmelt could accelerate Alaska’s wildfire seasons

Snow is melting early across much of Alaska this year, threatening snow removal companies in Anchorage and even moving the Iditarod starting line hundreds of miles north. This could also lead to a major wildfire season in parts of the state.

This was reported by Alaska Public Media.

University of Alaska Fairbanks researchers analyzed almost a century of Alaska fire weather data. They found that many of Alaska’s most extreme wildfire seasons started with an early snowoff — the last day of the year when snow is visible in a given place.

Peter Bieniek, a UAF climate scientist who co-authored the study, said his research group found that snow is melting much earlier than in the past due to human-caused climate change.

“So, what happens during an early snowoff year? Typically, it means you have a warm spring,” he said. “When you have a lot of fire, you also typically have warmer Junes and Julys that follow. Those warm conditions that started and resulted in the earlier snowoff persist into the fire season.”