OUR BURNING WORLD

L.A.'s devastating wildfires arrived against the backdrop of an ominous milestone for the planet

-  Chantelle Lee

IT'S LONG BEEN ESTABLISHED THAT climate change turbocharges wildfires, with drought, persistent heat, lightning storms, and dried vegetation all contributing to out-of-control blazes. That's just one reason a January report from the European Space Agency's Copernicus Climate Change Service came as such bad news. According to the release, 2024 was the first year global mean temperatures exceeded preindustrial levels by 1.6°C (2.88°F). That blows past the benchmark established by the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, which sought to limit future warming to well below 2°C in the 21st century, with a preferred target of 1.5°C. Doing so would help limit the impact of a hotter planet.