According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, “climate change refers to any significant change in measures of climate [such as] temperature, precipitation, or wind, that lasts for an extended period [of time]. ].” Human activities, natural factors and processes such as the burning of fossil fuels, changes in solar intensity, and ocean circulation are some of the ways climate change can occur (USEPA, 2011). This article will discuss the effects of climate change on wildfires and health, as well as the relationship(s) between extreme weather events and the effects of climate change. Wildfires are one of the dominant disturbances in the United States because they are a primary process that influences the composition and structure of vegetation in a given location. In the United States, an average of approximately 100,000 fires have burned over 3,300,000 acres each year over the past ten years (Flannigan, Stocks, Wotton, 2000). Shape from year to year; there is great variability in wildfire statistics. For example, between 1992 and 1996, the total area burned increased by approximately 5.5 million acres. This represents a difference of 6.5 million acres in 1996 and 1 million in 1992 (Flannigan et al. 2000). The majority of burned areas are the result of relatively small fires, like all wildfires in the western United States, where 1% is responsible for 98% of the total area burned. The western and southeastern United States are where most burned areas are typically found (Flannigan et al. 2000). The time of year when these fires occur varies depending on the regions in which they occur. In the Southwest and Southeast, most burned areas occur in May and June. Whereas, in terms of burned areas... middle of paper ... emergency visits in 1991 are a good example (Greenough, et al. 2001). References (2011, January 24). US Environmental Protection Agency: Climate Change. Retrieved from http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/basicinfo.htmlFlannigan, MD, Stocks, BJ, Wotton, BM (2000). Climate change and forest fires. The Science of the Total Environment, 262, 221-229. Greenough, G., McGeehin, M., Bernard, SM, Trtanj, J., Riad, J., Engelberg, D. (2001). The potential health impacts of climate variability and change from extreme weather events in the United States. Environmental Health Perspectives, 109(2), 191-198. Khasnis, A.A., Nettleman, M.D., (2005). Global warming and infectious diseases. Archives of Medical Research, 36, 689-696. Ramin, B., Svoboda, T. (2009). Homeless health and climate change. Journal of Urban Geography, 86(4), 654-664.