Fossil fuels linked to over a third of Western North America's wildfires, study shows.

A study by the Union of Concerned Scientists found that 37% of the area burned by wildfires in the Western US and Canada since 1986 can be traced back to carbon pollution from 88 of the world’s major fossil fuel producers and cement manufacturers. The study also found that the fossil fuel activities of these companies warmed the planet by 0.5 degrees Celsius since 1901. Fossil fuel companies have denied the conclusions of those reports. The researchers used a method that scientists have relied on in recent years to quantify how much of a role the climate crisis is playing in extreme weather and environmental disasters.