The 2021 Oregon wildfire season began in May 2021. More than 1,000 fires had burned at least 518,303 acres (209,750 ha) across the state as of July 21, 2021. As of August 1, it was expected that the fires might not be contained for months.
The wildfire season in Oregon experienced an early start due to an abnormally dry spring coupled with low snowpack levels amid an ongoing drought. The 2021 season has been outpacing the destructive previous season, with nearly 10 times as many acres have burned as of July 20 compared to the previous year through that date, according to the NIFC's Northwest Coordination Center.
Background
"Fire season" in Oregon typically begins in mid-May and ends with the first rains that normally begins in late September. Drought, snowpack levels, and local weather conditions play a role in Oregon's fire season, particularly in Eastern and Southwest Oregon. During peak fire season from July to September, most wildfires are caused by lightning, while ignitions in the early and later parts of the season are related to humans. Warm, dry conditions in summer heighten the wildfire risk. After over 100 years of fire suppression and prevention of all fires, there is now an abundance of fuel. Climate change is leading to a reduced snowpack with an earlier and reduced snowmelt, so there is a higher risk for areas that receive wildfires.
Oregon has been experiencing increasingly large fire seasons over the last few decades, with the preceding 2020 wildfire season being one of the most destructive in the state's history. As with much of the rest of the Western United States, fire officials were predicting another above-average season in 2021 due to expected low precipitation and high temperatures. The state's declaration of the start of wildfire season in mid-May marked the earliest start to a fire season in the state in over 40 years. In preparation for the wildfire season, forest officials performed prescribed burns and state lawmakers worked on wildfire-mitigation legislation designed to create wildfire risk maps, update building codes, and create new rules related to defensible space around homes in the wildland–urban interface.
List of wildfires
The following is a list of fires that burned more than 1,000 acres (400 ha), or produced significant structural damage or casualties.
Response
At the end of July 2021, Governor Kate Brown signed a bill to invest $220 million in wildfire prevention, preparedness, and response.