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1 1 (January 4, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/govebwc0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Inforrn~ng the kgi.slntive debate srnte 1S14 9 Updated January 4, 2021 Wildfire Statistics Wildfires are unplanned and unwanted fires, including lightning-caused fires, unauthorized human-caused fires, and escaped prescribedfire projects. States are responsible for responding to wildfires that begin on nonfederal (state, local, and private) lands, except for lands protectedby federal agencies under cooperative agreements. The federal government is responsible forresponding to wildfires that begin on federal lands. The Forest Service (FS)-within the U.S. Department of Agriculture-carries out wildfire management andresponse across the 193 million acres of the National Forest System(NFS). The Department of the Interior (DOI) manages wildfire response for more than 400 million acres ofnationalparks, wildlife refuges and preserves, otherpublic lands, andIndianreservations. Wildfire statistics help to illustratepastU.S. wildfire activity. Nationwide data compiled by the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) indicate thatthe number of annual wildfires is variable but has decreased slightly over the last 30 years and that the numberofacres impacted annually, while also variable, generally has increased (see Figure 1). Since 2000, an annual average of 70,685 wildfires burned an annual average of7.1 million acres. This figure is more than double the average annual acreage burned in the 1990s (3.3 million acres), although a greater number of fires occurred annually in the 1990s (78,600 on average). Table I . Annual Wildfires and Acres Burned 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Number of Fires (thousands) Federal 13.8 12.6 15.2 12.5 10.9 FS 7.1 5.7 6.6 5.6 5.3 DOI 6.6 6.8 7.3 7.0 5.3 Nonfederal 54.4 55.2 56.4 45.6 39.6 Total 68.2 67.7 71.5 58.1 50.5 Acres Burned (millions) Federal 7.41 3.00 6.3 4.6 3.1 FS 1.92 1.25 2.9 2.3 0.6 DOI 5.47 1.70 3.3 2.3 2.3 Nonfederal 2.72 2.51 3.7 4.1 1.6 Total 10.13 5.51 10.0 8.8 4.7 Source: National Interagency Fire Center (N I FC). Notes: Federal includes fires that began on land managed bythe Forest Service (FS), Department of the Interior (DOI), and other federal agencies (not listed). Nonfederal includes all other lands. Column totals may not add due to rounding. Figure 1. Annual Wildfires and Acres Burned (1991-2020) Fires, thoasands Acres bured, mlions 20 12 60 6 40 4 Acres burned 0 0 Source: National InteragencyFire Center (NIFC). Note: Data reflect wildland fires and acres burned nationwide, includingwildland fires on federal and nonfederal lands. Overthe past 10years (2011-2020), there were an average of 62,693 wildfires annually and an average of 7.5 million acres impacted annually. In 2020, over 58,250 wildfires burned 10.3 million acres, the most acreage impacted in a year (see Figure 2); nearly 40% of these acres were in California. Nearly half of the acres impacted were on NFS lands. This report will be updated with additional 2020 summary statistics when those figures are available. Figure 2. Top Five Years with Largest Wildfire Acreage Burned Since 1960 Year Acres buned(millions) Numberof Fires 2020 -. 2015 68.2 2017 2006 9.6 A 2007 ` Source: NIFC. Note: Number of fires in thousands. The numberoffires and acreageburned are indicators of the annual level of wildfire activity, but they may be misleading, since many fires may occur in large, relatively undeveloped areas, with very little impact to human development or communities. Acreage burned also does not indicate the severity of the wildfire or the degree of impact to the forest, soils, or any other ecologicaleffects. In 2019, 65% of the nationwide acreage burned bywildfis was on federal lands (3.1 million acres; see Table 1). The https://crs reports.congress.gov

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