Humans blamed for spike in homes and buildings destroyed by wildfires

The Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences found that wildfires are extending to previously out-of-season months, while more buildings are in areas of vegetation prone to blazes. File picture: AP

The number of homes and buildings destroyed by wildfires in the Western world has trebled in the last decade, with humans to blame for igniting three-quarters of the blazes.

American scientists examined wildfires between 2010 and 2020 and found they were becoming increasingly common in areas where people lived and worked.