Canada’s wildfires are part of our new climate reality, experts and officials say

The country has already seen 1,400% of the normal amount of land burned for this time of year. More than 400 blazes were burning across Canada on Wednesday, following an unprecedentedly intense beginning to the fire season. Hot and dry conditions are expected to persist through to the end of the season.

“The ongoing wildfires remind us that carbon pollution carries a cost on our society, as it accelerates climate change,” Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s minister of environment and climate change, tweeted on Wednesday.