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by Journeyman (3.9k points)
edited by
Without people there would be no forest fires in California right now because dry vegetation CANNOT ignite, unlike what the media is telling us.

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Das ewige Geheimnis in dummdeutschen Schwurbelmedien, wie trockene Vegetation "sich entzünden" kann.

Sie tut es nie. Jemand muss sie anzünden. Es gäbe ohne Menschen zur Zeit keinen Waldbrand in Kalifornien.

Desinformation hilft nie, nicht mal einer guten Sache.
ago by Newbie (290 points)
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Your claim is False.

Dry vegetation does not catch fire on its own; it needs an ignition source. While humans cause many wildfires through campfires, cigarettes, and power lines, natural causes like lightning strikes can also start fires. In California, hot, dry, and windy conditions make it easier for fires to spread once ignited. Though human activity increases wildfire frequency, fires can still happen naturally. Lightning storms, rare volcanic activity, and even rockfalls creating sparks have started fires before. So while people play a big role in wildfires, it’s not true that fires wouldn’t happen without them—natural wildfires have existed for millions of years.

https://www.preventionweb.net/news/lightning-caused-wildfires-are-80-percent-more-likely-under-dry-vegetation
ago by (100 points)
0 0
While aspects of this statement are true. Yes, a majority of wildfires are caused due to human intervention but would wildfires suddenly disappear if human suddenly vacated California or areas that have frequent wildfires. The answer is clearly no, due to dry weather conditions, wind patterns and changes, and potential hazards caused by extreme weather. According to your source, an unverified account states that dry vegetation cannot be "ignited" without human intervention. I don't think this source uses credible information to justify the statement, but I believe it is trying to identify a common problem that people are not taking responsibility for potential fire hazards. The National Park Service states that untended campfires, equipment use, or discarded cigarettes' are all hazards that can cause large scale wildfires that can be prevent with a little common care. Are wildfires cause by humans? yes. Can dry vegetation be ignited by other forces than humans? Yes. Can wildfires be prevented by humans? yes.

Source: https://www.nps.gov/articles/wildfire-causes-and-evaluation.htm
ago by (100 points)
0 0
Your claim is false, there are many factors contributing to the forrest fires in California and saying that people are the main cause is just the conveinent target.  The key factors in these specific fires are due to climate change (warmer temperatures, less rainfall, and prolonged fire seasons) there is dryer vegetaion which leads to easier ignition and abilty to spread. So I would not go as far as saying that we as humans are the whole problem, approximately 84% of wildfires do start by human activity, but there are other contributors we can look at before making as bold of a claim. Other contributors include lighting, and power lines, the additon of wind also increases the spread. So while humans are a main contributor to wildfires, there are other factors to be considered, and though humans may contribute to the spread, they also are the main species to prevent the spread.

https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/qa-causes-spread-and-solutions-californias-wildfire-crisis

17 Answers

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ago by Newbie (360 points)
This is a false claim, there has been wild fires for millions of years completely before human were on earth or any human ancestor. All fires have something that start it such as a lightning or any other form of intense heat. You also have no initial source that proves this claim just the claim from a twitter post which itself has no source either. Most wild fires start with dry vegetation as well. The account that gave you the claim also seems to be very unreliable and not a real viable source for any type of claim.

https://www.dryad.net/post/how-do-wildfires-start
False
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ago by Newbie (300 points)

Wildfires in California are not solely caused by humans. Natural factors like lightning, strong winds, and drought also ignite fires. Climate change has worsened conditions by increasing temperatures and drying out vegetation, making fires more frequent and intense (Stephens & Kruczkiewicz, 2025). While CNN reports that 95% of California wildfires are human-caused, suppression of smaller natural fires has allowed fuel to accumulate, leading to larger, more destructive fires (National Geographic, 2023). The claim that wildfires wouldn’t occur without human activity is false—natural causes have always played a role, but human actions have intensified their impact.

False
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ago by Novice (650 points)

              First and foremost, the claim that “dry vegetation can’t ignite” is blatantly, laughably false. Not only are wildfires a natural occurrence across the globe, but smaller, less disastrous fires are necessary for a continued, healthy, growing ecosystem. Secondly, by reading the replies to that Bluesky comment, it's possible the owner of that original post meant to get across that it is more likely for a person to have started the California fire as opposed to it being a natural occurrence. Regardless of the original intent, a German meteorologist of his renown should fact-check himself before discussing such a sensitive topic because claiming that “dry vegetation can’t ignite” is an incredibly damaging blow to reliability.

Cited Sources:

1.wfca_teila. “Are Wildfires Good for the Environment?” WFCA, 17 Sept. 2024, wfca.com/wildfire-articles/are-wildfires-good-for-the-environment/.

False
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ago by Newbie (270 points)

This claim is not entirely true. The post states that dry vegetation cannot catch fire without people being there; however, there have been many cases where it has happened in the past. Lighting strikes, volcanic eruptions, and the heat of the sun can all naturally start wild land fires. According to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 84% of wildfires in the United States are caused by human activities, which includes both intentional acts and unintentional human-related incidents, making humans the primary source of wildfires in the country. So, although it's a common misconception that humans are the only causes of wildfires, it's not always the case.

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/89757/people-cause-most-us-wildfires#:~:text=Humans%E2%80%94not%20lightning%E2%80%94trigger%20most,wildfires%20were%20caused%20by%20people.

 

Exaggerated/ Misleading
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ago by Newbie (340 points)

This source is unreliable because it comes from an unverified post. I believe that it is false because my source also says, "Then the area more recently experienced prolonged dry weather, creating conditions for fires to break out Tuesday, January 7. The proliferation of dry, young vegetation combined with the higher-than-usual Santa Ana winds— as high as 100 mph at times — caused the fires to spread much faster than normal." (world vision.org). This states that natural reasons still come into play when fires occur in the California area.  There are also things such as natural ignition sources, fuel availability, and climate change. 

https://www.worldvision.org/disaster-relief-news-stories/california-fires-facts-faqs-how-to-help

False
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ago by Newbie (300 points)

This is false. While humans cause the majority of all forest fires globally, saying that there definitively wouldn't be any forest fires in California without humans is generally misleading. According to the National Park Service (NPS) around 85% of forest fires in the U.S. are man-made. A large cause of forest fires is lightning strikes, especially to arid climates such as California.

Wildfire Causes and Evaluations (U.S. National Park Service) 

False
0 like 0 dislike
ago by Newbie (260 points)
First of all the claim of "There wouldn't be any forest fires in California if there wasn't people" is full of clickbait. According to countless articles including Penn State's own, climate change is at fault for these sudden fires. With warmer temperatures and less rain naturally there will an increase of drier vegetation causing natural fires to occur more frequently. Meaning the fires would happen no matter what and the fact there are humans around these areas wouldn't of changed the fact there would be fires. Although the fires would of naturally happened the existence of humans did alter the severance of these fires but humans are not the sole reason of California fires.

https://www.llnl.gov/article/49901/human-caused-climate-change-center-recent-california-wildfires   

https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/qa-causes-spread-and-solutions-californias-wildfire-crisis.
Exaggerated/ Misleading

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