Green

Comparing Lightning-Caused and Human-Caused U.S. Wildfires

Published

2 years ago

October 18, 2022

Gilbert Fontana

Featured Creator

Article/Editing:

Carmen Ang

comparing acres burned by human-caused fires versus lightning in the U.S.

Comparing Lightning-Caused and Human-Caused U.S. Wildfires

Each year, thousands of acres of land are scorched by wildfires across the United States. While most of these fires are triggered by natural causes such as lightning, some are unfortunately caused by human activity.

This graphic by Gilbert Fontana uses data from the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) to show the number of acres burned across the U.S. between 2001 and 2021.

Year	Acres burned (lightning-caused fires)	Acres burned (human-caused fires)
2021	4,101,884	3,023,759
2020	4,123,523	5,998,813
2019	3,447,038	1,217,324
2018	3,127,003	5,640,489
2017	5,195,610	4,830,476
2016	1,743,385	3,766,610
2015	8,112,688	2,012,461
2014	2,012,843	1,582,770
2013	3,057,566	1,261,980
2012	6,825,989	2,500,249
2011	3,354,596	5,356,771
2010	2,119,275	1,303,449
2009	3,849,040	2,072,746
2008	1,862,477	3,429,991
2007	5,878,691	3,449,360
2006	5,468,901	4,404,844
2005	7,168,062	1,521,327
2004	7,011,023	964,800
2003	2,038,443	1,922,249
2002	4,097,593	3,077,119
2001	1,822,600	1,748,661

Historically, we can see that lightning-caused fires have led to more damage in the U.S., and this is especially true in the West region which includes states like California, Oregon, and Washington.

That said, it’s worth noting that in three out of the six years from 2016–2021, human-caused wildfires led to more damage.

If you’re interested in learning more about wildfires, check out this article about The Relationship Between Climate Change and Wildfires

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

Related Topics:America US wildfires fires air quality climate lightning human-caused wildfires matches camping campfire cigarette cigarettes

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Green

Ranking the Top 15 Countries by Carbon Tax Revenue

This graphic highlights France and Canada as the global leaders when it comes to generating carbon tax revenue.

Published

1 week ago

April 16, 2024

Bruno Venditti

Top 15 Countries by Carbon Tax Revenue

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Carbon taxes are designed to discourage CO2 emissions by increasing the cost of carbon-intensive activities and incentivizing the adoption of cleaner energy alternatives.

In this graphic we list the top 15 countries by carbon tax revenue as of 2022. The data is from the World Bank’s State and Trends of Carbon Pricing Report, published in April 2023.

France and Canada Lead in Global Carbon Tax Revenue

In 2022, the top 15 countries generated approximately $30 billion in revenue from carbon taxes.

France and Canada lead in this regard, accounting for over half of the total amount. Both countries have implemented comprehensive carbon pricing systems that cover a wide range of sectors, including transportation and industry, and they have set relatively high carbon tax rates.

Country	Government revenue in 2022 ($ billions)
🇫🇷 France	$8.9
🇨🇦 Canada	$7.8
🇸🇪 Sweden	$2.3
🇳🇴 Norway	$2.1
🇯🇵 Japan	$1.8
🇫🇮 Finland	$1.7
🇨🇭 Switzerland	$1.6
🇬🇧 United Kingdom	$0.9
🇮🇪 Ireland	$0.7
🇩🇰 Denmark	$0.5
🇵🇹 Portugal	$0.5
🇦🇷 Argentina	$0.3
🇲🇽 Mexico	$0.2
🇸🇬 Singapore	$0.1
🇿🇦 South Africa	$0.1

In Canada, the total carbon tax revenue includes both national and provincial taxes.

While carbon pricing has been recognized internationally as one of the more efficient mechanisms for reducing CO2 emissions, research is divided over what the global average carbon price should be to achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, which aims to limit global warming to 1.5–2°C by 2100 relative to pre-industrial levels.

A recent study has shown that carbon pricing must be supported by other policy measures and innovations. According to a report from Queen’s University, there is no feasible carbon pricing scenario that is high enough to limit emissions sufficiently to achieve anything below 2.4°C warming on its own.