Six Counties At Highest Wildfire Risk Were In Top 10% For Population Growth During 2013-2018
Americans are moving to homes that are more likely to burn as the climate warms. The flammable frontier between human settlement and wilderness, known as the wildland-urban interface, has become an increasingly popular destination for people seeking affordable housing in desirable locales.
California is ground zero. Approximately 14.5 % of California’s houses are in the wildland-urban interface (Texas and Colorado rank right behind)—regions that are turning into tinderboxes thanks to a warming climate, unprecedented droughts, and overgrown forests. Of the 10 largest fires in California’s history, eight have raged since 2010. The worst fire season on record was 2020.
“People have been driven into the wildlife urban interface because they’re being pushed out” due to housing prices, says Skylar Olsen, the principal economist with ClimateCheck, a property risk assessment company analyzing climate risk.
Climate modelers are now putting a number on the hazard. ClimateCheck compared population growth data from the US Census with the likelihood of future fires, an estimate based on expected temperatures, precipitation, soil risk, plant growth, and other variables. While metro areas still attract most of the population growth in the US, many ex-urban or rural countries ranking high for fire hazards are growing fast. Among the counties with the highest fire risk, six ranked among the top 10% for population growth between 2013-2018.
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EDIT
https://qz.com/1934564/people-keep-moving-to-us-counties-most-at-risk-of-wildfires/