UC Davis study says lakes impacted by California wildfires
Nearly every Californian can remember wildfire smoke bathing Sacramento, the Bay Area and other locations in orange hues two years ago or the smell of burned wildlands wafting into their neighborhoods. Now, researchers say the smoke could have adversely affected the state’s freshwater ecosystems. Ashy plumes gusting from conflagrations should not be characterized as an “event” but rather now as a seasonal weather phenomenon, said Adrianne Smits, a UC Davis aquatic ecologist who studies at the university’s Tahoe Environmental Research Center. In 2020 and 2021, at least 70% of the Golden State was shrouded in smoke. Wildfire activity has quintupled since the 1970s, according to UC Davis.
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