Experts: more logging won't stop Oregon's wildfires
Dr. Dominick DellaSala, chief scientist for Wild Heritage and an evacuee of last year's wildfire in Talent, Oregon, said increasingly the term "wildfires" is a misnomer, because they become urban fires that destroy unprepared communities.
"Every dollar spent in the backcountry logging forests is a dollar that is not being spent assisting communities in hardening their homes for our new climate/fire reality," DellaSala asserted.
Dr. Dominick DellaSala, chief scientist for Wild Heritage and an evacuee of last year's wildfire in Talent, Oregon, said increasingly the term "wildfires" is a misnomer, because they become urban fires that destroy unprepared communities.
"Every dollar spent in the backcountry logging forests is a dollar that is not being spent assisting communities in hardening their homes for our new climate/fire reality," DellaSala asserted.
Extreme fire behavior has erupted in the West. Here’s what that means.
It’s likely that more extreme fire behavior is in the offing over the next several months. While the environment, characterized by excessive heat and a pronounced lack of humidity, is a tinder box, winds are a major factor in fueling fire expansion. They usually ramp up during the autumn. Offshore wind events are also effective at drying the landscape even more, particularly on the western slope of hillsides and within mountain valleys.
As climate change continues to foster more extreme heat events and a drying of the West, it’s probable that bouts of extreme fire behavior will continue.
It’s likely that more extreme fire behavior is in the offing over the next several months. While the environment, characterized by excessive heat and a pronounced lack of humidity, is a tinder box, winds are a major factor in fueling fire expansion. They usually ramp up during the autumn. Offshore wind events are also effective at drying the landscape even more, particularly on the western slope of hillsides and within mountain valleys.
As climate change continues to foster more extreme heat events and a drying of the West, it’s probable that bouts of extreme fire behavior will continue.
Indigenous-led prescribed burns could help reduce wildfire risks, experts say
Wildfire experts say British Columbia must spark far more prescribed burns, akin to how Indigenous communities have managed forests, to mitigate the risk of huge blazes.
“We’re not burning anywhere near as much as we should,” said fire ecologist and noted burn boss Bob Gray, from Chilliwack, B.C., who consults for local, provincial, state and tribal governments across Canada and the United States.
Wildfire experts say British Columbia must spark far more prescribed burns, akin to how Indigenous communities have managed forests, to mitigate the risk of huge blazes.
“We’re not burning anywhere near as much as we should,” said fire ecologist and noted burn boss Bob Gray, from Chilliwack, B.C., who consults for local, provincial, state and tribal governments across Canada and the United States.
Wildfires are intensifying. Here’s why, and what can be done.
Wildfire experts see the signature of climate change in the dryness, high heat and longer fire season that have made these fires more extreme. “We wouldn’t be seeing this giant ramp up in fire activity as fast as it is happening without climate change,” said Park Williams, a climate scientist at UCLA. “There’s just no way.”
These conditions have been exacerbated by fire-suppression policies. Before the modern settlement of the American West, forested land in the region burned naturally from lightning or else was intentionally burned by native communities as a form of forest maintenance. But for the past hundred years, most Western states have suppressed fires. That has led to increasingly dense forests and ample brush on the forest floors.
“We’re primed for fire,” Ms. Quinn-Davidson said.
Wildfire experts see the signature of climate change in the dryness, high heat and longer fire season that have made these fires more extreme. “We wouldn’t be seeing this giant ramp up in fire activity as fast as it is happening without climate change,” said Park Williams, a climate scientist at UCLA. “There’s just no way.”
These conditions have been exacerbated by fire-suppression policies. Before the modern settlement of the American West, forested land in the region burned naturally from lightning or else was intentionally burned by native communities as a form of forest maintenance. But for the past hundred years, most Western states have suppressed fires. That has led to increasingly dense forests and ample brush on the forest floors.
“We’re primed for fire,” Ms. Quinn-Davidson said.
Why does California have so any wildfires? There are four key ingredients to the disastrous wildfire seasons in the West, and climate change is a key culprit.
“In pretty much every single way, a perfect recipe for fire is just kind of written in California,” Dr. Williams said. “Nature creates the perfect conditions for fire, as long as people are there to start the fires. But then climate change, in a few different ways, seems to also load the dice toward more fire in the future.”
“In pretty much every single way, a perfect recipe for fire is just kind of written in California,” Dr. Williams said. “Nature creates the perfect conditions for fire, as long as people are there to start the fires. But then climate change, in a few different ways, seems to also load the dice toward more fire in the future.”
Fighting wildfires in western WA requires different approaches
Although the 2020 fires were a new and devastating experience for modern society, such fires are very much business as usual when viewed over longer history.
For millennia, massive and severe fires have periodically burned millions of acres in the western Cascades. Unlike the east side of the state, where fire suppression and fuel buildup have contributed to uncharacteristically large and severe fires in dry forests, such fires are entirely characteristic for the west side.
Although the 2020 fires were a new and devastating experience for modern society, such fires are very much business as usual when viewed over longer history.
For millennia, massive and severe fires have periodically burned millions of acres in the western Cascades. Unlike the east side of the state, where fire suppression and fuel buildup have contributed to uncharacteristically large and severe fires in dry forests, such fires are entirely characteristic for the west side.
Lack of federal firefighters hurts California wildfire response
Forest Service firefighters in the Golden State say all kinds of jobs are sitting open, from hand crew members to bulldozer operators, and that crews assigned to major fires are struggling to assemble teams.
Forest Service firefighters in the Golden State say all kinds of jobs are sitting open, from hand crew members to bulldozer operators, and that crews assigned to major fires are struggling to assemble teams.
Residents of Gates, Oregon, aim their ire at Pacific Power nearly a year after their town burned
Dan Benjamin, assistant chief for the Gates Fire Department, remembers going from one fire to another after 9 p.m. that night. He said he had just helped extinguish a power line fire at a fellow firefighter’s house when he noticed a new fire on Potato Hill. Then, he was called to help with the fires ignited by power lines at Gates School, where about a hundred members of the Beachie Creek firefighting team were stationed…Firefighters were forced to evacuate immediately, and the incident command station was relocated from Gates School to Salem.
Dan Benjamin, assistant chief for the Gates Fire Department, remembers going from one fire to another after 9 p.m. that night. He said he had just helped extinguish a power line fire at a fellow firefighter’s house when he noticed a new fire on Potato Hill. Then, he was called to help with the fires ignited by power lines at Gates School, where about a hundred members of the Beachie Creek firefighting team were stationed…Firefighters were forced to evacuate immediately, and the incident command station was relocated from Gates School to Salem.
What western society can learn from Indigenous communities
As the world increasingly recognizes the accomplishments of many Indigenous communities that successfully coexist with ecosystems, there is much for Western society to learn.
As the world increasingly recognizes the accomplishments of many Indigenous communities that successfully coexist with ecosystems, there is much for Western society to learn.
As Western Wildfires Worsen, FEMA Is Denying Most People Who Ask For Help
The techniques FEMA uses to weed out ineligible or fraudulent applicants can end up denying aid to disaster survivors whose cases may be legitimate but who can't provide the documents FEMA needs to verify a claim — people who in some cases just lost their entire home and belongings.
The techniques FEMA uses to weed out ineligible or fraudulent applicants can end up denying aid to disaster survivors whose cases may be legitimate but who can't provide the documents FEMA needs to verify a claim — people who in some cases just lost their entire home and belongings.
Top wildfire expert prescribes controlled burns as preventive care
From the perspective of Mark Finney, one of the nation’s top fire experts, the U.S. is too focused on fighting wildfires instead of trying to prevent them in the first place.
Finney runs the Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory in Montana, the country’s only public institution dedicated solely to the study of wildfires, and he’s critical of the recent response to blazes ravaging western states.
From the perspective of Mark Finney, one of the nation’s top fire experts, the U.S. is too focused on fighting wildfires instead of trying to prevent them in the first place.
Finney runs the Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory in Montana, the country’s only public institution dedicated solely to the study of wildfires, and he’s critical of the recent response to blazes ravaging western states.
White House to raise federal firefighter pay to $15 an hour. Biden focusing on increased threats from climate change as wildfires, heat waves beset parts of the U.S.
President Joe Biden is raising wages for federal firefighters to no less than $15 an hour, as the White House seeks to put a spotlight on the growing threats of wildfires and heat waves exacerbated by climate change.
President Joe Biden is raising wages for federal firefighters to no less than $15 an hour, as the White House seeks to put a spotlight on the growing threats of wildfires and heat waves exacerbated by climate change.
Beyond the plume of smoke: There are choices in how and when we are exposed to smoke from fires.
There is growing recognition among fire scientists, air regulators, and policy makers that we need to return to controlled burning—Indigenous cultural and prescribed fires, which gives us more choice in the timing and quantity of smoke we are exposed to. Fire has always been part of California’s landscape, so we can either embrace the opportunity to use it on our own terms—as Indigenous cultural burns have done for millennia by working with nature—or continue to be subject to the fire nature will inevitably bring.
There is growing recognition among fire scientists, air regulators, and policy makers that we need to return to controlled burning—Indigenous cultural and prescribed fires, which gives us more choice in the timing and quantity of smoke we are exposed to. Fire has always been part of California’s landscape, so we can either embrace the opportunity to use it on our own terms—as Indigenous cultural burns have done for millennia by working with nature—or continue to be subject to the fire nature will inevitably bring.
Newsom misled the public about wildfire prevention efforts ahead of worst fire season on record
An investigation from CapRadio and NPR’s California Newsroom found the governor has misrepresented his accomplishments and even disinvested in wildfire prevention. The investigation found Newsom overstated, by an astounding 690%, the number of acres treated with fuel breaks and prescribed burns in the very forestry projects he said needed to be prioritized to protect the state’s most vulnerable communities.
An investigation from CapRadio and NPR’s California Newsroom found the governor has misrepresented his accomplishments and even disinvested in wildfire prevention. The investigation found Newsom overstated, by an astounding 690%, the number of acres treated with fuel breaks and prescribed burns in the very forestry projects he said needed to be prioritized to protect the state’s most vulnerable communities.
Colorado prison inmates fight wildfires while they’re serving time, but can’t get hired when they get out
For $12 a day, Colorado prison inmates trained to fight wildfires stand alongside the state’s seasonal fire crews, battling some of the state’s most devastating wildfires. It’s a job that is physically demanding and risky. And, until this year, it likely wouldn’t have led to a career fighting fires after they finished their sentence, thanks to stigma and discrimination against convicted felons.
For $12 a day, Colorado prison inmates trained to fight wildfires stand alongside the state’s seasonal fire crews, battling some of the state’s most devastating wildfires. It’s a job that is physically demanding and risky. And, until this year, it likely wouldn’t have led to a career fighting fires after they finished their sentence, thanks to stigma and discrimination against convicted felons.
‘Forever war’ with fire has California battling forests instead
It is a Sisyphean task. The state is home to some 33 million acres of woodland. An efficient crew, working with hand tools under ideal conditions, can get through a quarter of an acre a day, give or take.
It is a Sisyphean task. The state is home to some 33 million acres of woodland. An efficient crew, working with hand tools under ideal conditions, can get through a quarter of an acre a day, give or take.
Fire-proofing forests is not possible
In 1992 James Carville, then-candidate Bill Clinton’s advisor, famously coined the phrase “The economy, stupid.” The focus on the economy ultimately propelled Clinton into the White House.
In 1992 James Carville, then-candidate Bill Clinton’s advisor, famously coined the phrase “The economy, stupid.” The focus on the economy ultimately propelled Clinton into the White House.
Wildfire Updates: BLM expanding Utah fire restrictions as wildfires grow overnight
SALT LAKE CITY — Here are the latest updates on wildfires burning across the state of Utah.
SALT LAKE CITY — Here are the latest updates on wildfires burning across the state of Utah.
How federal agencies are failing their wildland firefighters
Sometime in the blur of September 2020, I stood on a ridgeline in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California and watched as the year’s deadliest fire ripped nearly 30 miles down the Middle Fork of the Feather River. The northeast winds that fueled the blowout howled around me and the other members of my crew throughout our 18-hour shift, peeling hard hats from heads, cracking lips, sandblasting eyelids until they puffed shut around grit-scratched corneas.
Sometime in the blur of September 2020, I stood on a ridgeline in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California and watched as the year’s deadliest fire ripped nearly 30 miles down the Middle Fork of the Feather River. The northeast winds that fueled the blowout howled around me and the other members of my crew throughout our 18-hour shift, peeling hard hats from heads, cracking lips, sandblasting eyelids until they puffed shut around grit-scratched corneas.
Crews use minimum impact suppression techniques to allow Johnson Fire to play its natural role in the Gila Wilderness Area
The Johnson Fire is approximately 38,225 acres and is burning in the Gila Wilderness on the Gila National Forest. The suppression strategy for this fire is confine and contain. Firefighters completed fireline preparation on Trails #151, #163 and #162 in anticipation of burn-out operations to occur later this week. The structure protection group completed protection of archeological sites up Cliff Dweller Canyon. Today firefighters will monitor fire activity along the western edge of the fire.
The Johnson Fire is approximately 38,225 acres and is burning in the Gila Wilderness on the Gila National Forest. The suppression strategy for this fire is confine and contain. Firefighters completed fireline preparation on Trails #151, #163 and #162 in anticipation of burn-out operations to occur later this week. The structure protection group completed protection of archeological sites up Cliff Dweller Canyon. Today firefighters will monitor fire activity along the western edge of the fire.