AICE Environmental Case Studies Practice Exam

Wildfire risk rises when hot, dry conditions meet landscapes that can carry and spread a fire. Climate change brings higher temperatures and longer dry spells, which dry out fuels like grasses, leaves, and dead wood, making them easier to ignite and burn intensely. At the same time, land-use changes—such as urban development at the wildland edge, agricultural clearing, logging, or fragmentation—alter how fuels are arranged and how often ignition sources occur. When fuels become more continuous and abundant, fires can start more easily and spread faster, sometimes shifting fire regimes toward larger, more severe wildfires. Some land management, like thinning forests or prescribed burns, can reduce risk, illustrating how both climate and land use together shape wildfire threats.