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Updated July 1, 2020
Wildfire Statistics
Wildfires are unplanned and unwanted fires, including
Figure 1. Annual Wildfires and Acres Burned
lightning-caused fires, unauthorized human-caused fires,
(1990-2019)
and escaped prescribed fire projects. States are responsible
for responding to wildfires that begin on nonfederal (state,
local, and private) lands, except for lands protected by
federal agencies under cooperative agreements. The federal
government is responsible for responding to wildfires that
begin on federal lands. The Forest Service (FS)—within the
U.S. Department of Agriculture—carries out wildfire
management and response across the 193 million acres of
the National Forest System. The Department of the Interior
(DOI) manages wildfire response for more than 400 million
acres of national parks, wildlife refuges and preserves, other
public lands, and Indian reservations.
Wildfire statistics help to illustrate past U.S. wildfire
Source: National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC).
activity. Nationwide data compiled by the National
Note: Data reflect wildland fires and acres burned nationwide,
Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) indicate that the number of
including wildland fires on federal and nonfederal lands.
annual wildfires is variable but has decreased slightly over
Over the past 10 years, there were an average of 64,100
the last 30 years and that the number of acres burned
wildfires annually and an average of 6.8 million acres
annually, while also variable, generally has increased (see
Figure 1). Every year since 2000, an average of 71,300
burned annually. In 2019, 50,477 wildfires burned 4.7
wildfires burned an average of 6.9 million acres. This figure
million acres nationwide, below the annual average for both
statistics. More than half of the acreage burned in 2019 was
is more than double the average annual acreage burned in
in Alaska (2.5 million acres), which was the only area that
the 1990s (3.3 million acres), although a greater number of
experienced significantly above-average wildfire activity
fires occurred annually in the 1990s (78,600 on average).
for the year. The 2015 fire season was the largest on record,
Table 1. Annual Wildfires and Acres Burned
with 10.1 million acres burned (see Figure 2); more than
half of these acres were in Alaska (5.1 million acres).
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
As of July 1, 2020, nearly 24,350 wildfires have burned
Number of Fires (thousands)
over 1.4 million acres this year.
Federal
13.8
12.6
15.2
12.5
10.9
Figure 2. Top Five Years with Largest Wildfire
FS
7.1
5.7
6.6
5.6
5.3
Acreage Burned Since 1960
DOI
6.6
6.8
7.3
7.0
5.3
Nonfederal
54.4
55.2
56.4
45.6
39.6
Total
68.2
67.7
71.5
58.1
50.5
Acres Burned (millions)
Federal
7.41
3.00
6.3
4.6
3.1
FS
1.92
1.25
2.9
2.3
0.6
DOI
5.47
1.70
3.3
2.3
2.3
Nonfederal
2.72
2.51
3.7
4.1
1.6
Source: NIFC.
Total
10.13
5.51
10.0
8.8
4.7
Source: National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC).
Although the number of fires and acreage burned are
Notes: Federal includes fires that began on land managed by the
indicators of the annual level of wildfire activity, they also
Forest Service (FS), Department of the Interior (DOI), and other
may be misleading, since many fires may occur in areas
federal agencies (not listed). Nonfederal includes al other lands.
that are large and relatively undeveloped, with very little
Column totals may not add due to rounding.
impact to human development or communities. Acreage
burned also does not indicate the severity of the wildfire or
the degree of impact to the forest, soils, or any other
ecological effects.
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Wildfire Statistics
In 2019, 65% of the nationwide acreage burned by wildfires
Wildfire Damages
was on federal lands (3.1 million acres; see Table 1). The
Although wildfires may have a beneficial impact on
other 35% of the acreage burned occurred on state, local, or
ecological resources, wildfires also may have a devastating
privately owned lands but also accounted for 78% of the
impact, especially for those communities affected by
fires (39,611). Of the federal acreage burned nationwide in
wildfire activity. Therefore, statistics showing the level of
2019, 75% (2.3 million acres) burned on DOI land (mostly
destruction a wildfire causes can be useful, such as acres
in Alaska) and 20% (0.6 million acres) burned on FS land
burned, lives lost (firefighters and civilians), and structures
(see Figure 3). Most wildfires are human-caused (88% on
(residential, commercial, and other) destroyed. Some of this
average from 2015 to 2019), although the wildfires caused
data, as well as firefighter personnel data, is provided in
by lightning tend to be slightly larger and burn more
Table 2.
acreage (55% of the average acreage burned from 2015 to
2019 was ignited by lightning).
Table 2. FS and DOI Personnel and Loss Statistics
Figure 3. Percentage of Acreage Burned by
2016
2017
2018
2019
Landowner
Personnel
FS Firefighters
10,000
10,000
10,000
10,000
DOI Firefighters
4,129
4,514
4,492
4,442
Losses
Structures Burned
4,312
12,306
25,790
963
% Residences
74%
66%
70%
46%
Sources: Agency budget justifications and NIFC’s Wildland Fire Summary and
Statistics Annual Reports.
Note: Personnel data reflect fiscal year data; structures and residences burned
reflect calendar-year data.
Source: NIFC.
Conflagrations
More wildfires occur in the East (including the central
Of the 1.4 million wildfires that have occurred since 2000,
states), but the wildfires in the West are larger and burn
197 exceeded 100,000 acres, and 13 exceeded 500,000
more acreage (including Alaska, Arizona, California,
acres. Only a small fraction of wildfires become
Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon,
catastrophic, and a small percentage of fires accounts for
Utah, Washington, and Wyoming). In 2019, over 29,600
the vast majority of acres burned. For example, only about
fires burned 0.6 million acres in the East, compared with
1% of wildfires become conflagrations—raging, destructive
nearly 21,000 wildfires that burned nearly 4.1 million acres
fires—but predicting which fires will “blow up” into
in the West (see Table 1). In the East (where there is less
conflagrations is challenging and depends on a multitude of
federal acreage), most of the fires occur on nonfederal
factors, such as weather and geography. In 2019, 2% of
lands, whereas in the West most of the fires occur on
wildfires were classified as large or significant (806) and 27
federal lands (see Figure 4). In 2019, 81% (0.5 million
wildfires exceeded 40,000 acres in size, 19 of which
acres) of the acreage burned in the East was on nonfederal
occurred in Alaska. Nine of the largest fires in 2019 also
land, whereas 72% (2.9 million acres) of the acreage burned
exceeded 100,000 acres. There were more large or
in the West was on federal land. The acreage burned in
significant wildfires in 2018: 1,167 (2% of the total fires
Alaska in 2019 (2.5 million acres) accounts for more than
that year), 48 of which exceeded 40,000 acres in size and
half the acreage burned in the West. It primarily occurred
11 of which exceeded 100,000 acres.
on federal land (1.7 million acres).
Issues for Congress
Figure 4. Acreage Burned by Region and Landowner
Issues for Congress include the strategies and resources
used for wildfire management and the impact of wildfires
on both the quality of life and the economy of communities
surrounding wildfire activity. Congress also considers the
total federal cost of wildfire management, including the
cost of suppression operations, costs that vary annually and
are difficult to predict.
For more information, see CRS In Focus IF10732, Federal
Assistance for Wildfire Response and Recovery.
Katie Hoover, Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
Laura A. Hanson, Senior Research Librarian
IF10244
Source: NIFC.
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Wildfire Statistics
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