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1 1 (August 6, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/goveegt0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Informing the kgi.slntive debate srnte 1S14 9 Updated August 6,2021 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 Coordination Center (NICC) indicate that the numberofannualwildfires is variable but has decreased slightly over the las t 30 years and that the number of acres impacted annually, while also variable, generally has increased(see Figure 1). Since 2000, an annual average of 70,600 wildfires burned an annual average of 7.0 million acres. This figure is more than double the average annual acreage burned in the 1990s (3.3 million acres), althougha greater number of fires occurred annually in the 1990s (78,600 average). Table 1. Annual Wildfires and Acres Burned 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Number of Fires (thousands) Federal 12.6 15.2 12.5 10.9 14A FS 5.7 6.6 5.6 5.3 6.7 DOI 6.8 7.3 7.0 5.3 7.6 Other <0.1 1.2 0.1 0.2 <0.1 Nonfederal 55.2 56A 45.6 39.6 44.6 Total 67.7 71.5 58.1 50.5 59.0 Acres Burned (millions) Federal 3.0 6.3 4.6 3.1 7.1 FS 1.2 2.9 2.3 0.6 4.8 DOI 1.7 3.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 Other <0.1 <0.1 <0.1 <0.1 <0.1 Nonfederal 2.5 3.7 4.1 1.6 3.1 Total 5.5 10.0 8.8 4.7 10.1 Source: National Interagency Coordination Center (N ICC) Wildland Fire Summary and Statistics annual reports. Notes: FS = Forest Service; DOI = Department of the Interior. Column totals may not add due to rounding. Figure I. Annual Wildfires and Acres Burned (199 1-2020) Fires e thousnds Acres bured mllions 100 10 60 6 40 4 Acres burned Source: NICC Wildland Fire Summary and Statistics annual reports. Note: Data reflect wild lan d fires an d ac res bu rn ed n at ionwid e, including wildland fires on federal and nonfederal lands. From2011 to 2020, there were an average of62,805 wildfires annually and an average of 7.5 million acres impacted annually. In 2020, 58,950 wildfires burned 10.1 million acres, the second-most acreage impactedin a year (see Figure 2) since 1960; nearly 40% of these acres were in California. Nearly half of the acres impactedwere on NFS lands. These officialfigures fromNICC reflect downward revisions fromearlier reported data for 2020. As of August 6, 2021, nearly 39,000 wildfires have impacted over 3.4 million acres. The nationwide preparedness level is at the maximum level(5), suggesting significant commitment of sharedresources. Figure 2. Top Five Years with Largest Wildfire Acreage Burned Since 1960 Year Acres burned (mifions) Number of Fires 2015 68.r 2020 59., 2017 71.5 2006 9.796A4 2007 9.367.8s Source: NICC Wildland Fire Summaryand Statisticsannual reports. Note: Numberof fires in thousands. The number of fires and acreageburned are indicators of the annual level of wildfire activity. However, these numbers may be misleading with respect to their impact on human development or communities since many fires may https://crsreports.congress.gov

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