Forests
Warmer and drier temperatures are more conducive to forest fires and the survival of invasive species in Alaska's forests.
Forest Fires
- Drier soils and hotter temperatures lead to more forest fires.
- In 2004, 6.6 million acres burned during the longest Alaska fire season ever documented, costing $108 million in damages, once again showing the costs of climate change (Anchorage Daily News October 31, 2005).
- Public health implications from these fires include mercury release, respiratory problems, and ground level ozone.
Invasive species
- Warmer and drier temperatures
allowed spruce bark beetles to thrive on the Kenai Peninsula
- In 1998, it was approximated that 1.1 million acres of the Kenai Peninsula had suffered, and spruce deaths expanded to an area the size of Connecticut (Geophysical Institute, UAF).
