"Climate change is fanning longer- and deeper-burning fires in interior Alaska, changing the area from a carbon sink -- where planet-warming gases are stored naturally in the soil -- to a carbon emitter, scientists reported on Sunday.

The shift has occurred within the last 10 years and is due in large part to a longer burning season, according to a study published in Nature Geosciences."

Deborah Zabarenko reports for Reuters December 6, 2010. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Alaska Acknowledges Effects of Climate Change" (AP) [3]