Marshall Connolly of Catholic Online has published a great rebuttal to a recent Washington Times piece claiming that a slow wildfire season in California "throws a damper on climate-change predictions."
Marshall points out that the unprecedented drought—which many scientists say is connected to climate change—is one of the reasons for fewer fires; most fires that aren't caused by human activity are due to lightening storms.
Marshall also delves into the more technical aspects of the drought noting the role of the "Ridiculously Resilient Ridge," a high pressure atmospheric system that has persisted for much of the last three years. "Until now, there are no records of such a persistent ridge of high pressure in that region lasting for more than one winter season. Ever…This is a climate anomaly and such anomalies are predicted by climate change theory."
So, while the concept is counter-intuitive, the relatively mild fire season is actually completely consistent with climate change predictions.