Here’s how technology can help fight, prevent wildfires
When wildfires hit Alberta earlier this month, leaving more than 10,000 square kilometers of land scorched so far this year, Joao Lopes was worried about how much more devastation could be on its way.
“Unfortunately, the statistics are showing that maybe next year will be worse than this year,” said the entrepreneur, who is founded in crop monitoring and fire risk assessment technology company SensaioTech.
Wildfires flaring up around Halifax in recent days is yet another reminder of the increasing risks that many are warning of.
A United Nations report from 2022 found wildfires are becoming “more intense and more frequent” and said with temperatures rising as global warming worsens, “the need to reduce wildfire risk is more critical than ever.”
Canada alone sees about 7,500 wildfires burning more than 2.5 million hectares of forest — about half the size of Nova Scotia — every year and that amount is