Millions of Californians live near oil and gas wells that are in the path of wildfires
“Wildfires are increasingly burning in oil fields over the past four decades, and it’s a trend that’s very likely to continue throughout the rest of the century, including near some densely populated parts of California,” González said.
The researchers also found that exposure to oil wells in the path of wildfires was unevenly distributed. Black, Latino and Native American people faced disproportionate risk.
“Wildfires are increasingly burning in oil fields over the past four decades, and it’s a trend that’s very likely to continue throughout the rest of the century, including near some densely populated parts of California,” González said.
The researchers also found that exposure to oil wells in the path of wildfires was unevenly distributed. Black, Latino and Native American people faced disproportionate risk.
Artificial intelligence can be our first line of defense in limiting the effects of wildfires
“The AI platform is a new tool in the toolbox and allows data to drive firefighting decisions, which saves lives, protects habitats, and infrastructure. In its first season, the AI platform was utilized in all 21 CAL FIRE Dispatch Centers and detected over 1,200 fires across California, beating 911 call reporting over 30% of the time.”
“The AI platform is a new tool in the toolbox and allows data to drive firefighting decisions, which saves lives, protects habitats, and infrastructure. In its first season, the AI platform was utilized in all 21 CAL FIRE Dispatch Centers and detected over 1,200 fires across California, beating 911 call reporting over 30% of the time.”
By burning down buildings, insurers want to change how they’re built
The message to homebuilders is stark: Homes in certain parts of the United States must now be constructed with wildfires in mind, or they most likely will not be insured, which would mean they couldn’t be bought with a mortgage.
The message to homebuilders is stark: Homes in certain parts of the United States must now be constructed with wildfires in mind, or they most likely will not be insured, which would mean they couldn’t be bought with a mortgage.
As wildfires rage in Oregon, tree-sitters continue protests to protect old growth trees
Timothy Ingalsbee, the executive director of Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics and Ecology said sensational media coverage of wildfires creates and instills fears of a natural process. Activists said the timber industry and politicians bank on these worries.
“Scientists call it a natural disturbance but I prefer to call it an ecological stimulus,” Ingalsbee said. “Fire is nature’s recycler. It helps create a diversity of habitats.”
Ingalsbee said fires burn down small trees while larger and older ones are able to resist the same type of damage. Timber companies, on the other hand, cut down the larger trees to maximize profits, leaving behind younger and highly flammable forest.
Timothy Ingalsbee, the executive director of Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics and Ecology said sensational media coverage of wildfires creates and instills fears of a natural process. Activists said the timber industry and politicians bank on these worries.
“Scientists call it a natural disturbance but I prefer to call it an ecological stimulus,” Ingalsbee said. “Fire is nature’s recycler. It helps create a diversity of habitats.”
Ingalsbee said fires burn down small trees while larger and older ones are able to resist the same type of damage. Timber companies, on the other hand, cut down the larger trees to maximize profits, leaving behind younger and highly flammable forest.
Fueled by climate change, extreme wildfires have doubled in 20 years
“We’ve had this paradox where the amount of burning on Earth is declining … and yet we are having fires that are more extreme, more damaging,” said Stephen Pyne, fire historian and emeritus professor at Arizona State University. “How do we reconcile these two?”
“We’ve had this paradox where the amount of burning on Earth is declining … and yet we are having fires that are more extreme, more damaging,” said Stephen Pyne, fire historian and emeritus professor at Arizona State University. “How do we reconcile these two?”
Scientists seek ways to protect PNW rainforests from wildfires
For instance, in a drier forest, the intensity of a fire is constrained mainly by how much burnable material sits on the ground. Counterintuitively, aggressively fighting too many fires in such an ecosystem can make future wildfires worse, because frequent, moderate fires clear away some of the smaller trees and undergrowth that could power an even larger, more severe fire. That’s why prescribed fire — the strategy of deliberately setting a moderate fire — works so well in many forests. It’s also why many ecologists argue that some wildfires should be allowed to burn, and that overzealous firefighting can worsen the risk of an uncontrollable megafire. In a dry forest, a smaller good fire makes an extreme bad fire less likely.
For instance, in a drier forest, the intensity of a fire is constrained mainly by how much burnable material sits on the ground. Counterintuitively, aggressively fighting too many fires in such an ecosystem can make future wildfires worse, because frequent, moderate fires clear away some of the smaller trees and undergrowth that could power an even larger, more severe fire. That’s why prescribed fire — the strategy of deliberately setting a moderate fire — works so well in many forests. It’s also why many ecologists argue that some wildfires should be allowed to burn, and that overzealous firefighting can worsen the risk of an uncontrollable megafire. In a dry forest, a smaller good fire makes an extreme bad fire less likely.
In controversial push to thin forests to prevent wildfire, concerns grow over loss of old growth
Conservationists say timber companies, brought in to assist with forest thinning for wildfire, are also taking old growth trees most resilient to fire
Conservationists say timber companies, brought in to assist with forest thinning for wildfire, are also taking old growth trees most resilient to fire
Criminal charge dismissed against federal burn manager in rural Oregon
A criminal case was dismissed Wednesday against a U.S. Forest Service employee arrested in 2022 by a rural Oregon sheriff after a prescribed burn on federal land unexpectedly spread to private property and burned roughly 20 acres.
A criminal case was dismissed Wednesday against a U.S. Forest Service employee arrested in 2022 by a rural Oregon sheriff after a prescribed burn on federal land unexpectedly spread to private property and burned roughly 20 acres.
Umatilla tribal leader passes the drip torch to future generations learning about prescribed fire
When it comes to fire, Huesties plays two roles: firefighter and fire starter. He fights fires that overtake buildings in town, then he sets fires to wild areas as a way to tamp down overgrowth.
He said the tribe continues to struggle to recruit young tribal members into firefighting, but maybe they would be interested if they got a taste of the excitement. He himself learned to love the adrenaline from the job.
When it comes to fire, Huesties plays two roles: firefighter and fire starter. He fights fires that overtake buildings in town, then he sets fires to wild areas as a way to tamp down overgrowth.
He said the tribe continues to struggle to recruit young tribal members into firefighting, but maybe they would be interested if they got a taste of the excitement. He himself learned to love the adrenaline from the job.
Can satellites combat wildfires? Inside the booming ‘space race’ to fight the flames
New satellite missions backed by NASA, Google, SpaceX, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and other groups were announced this week and promise to advance early wildfire detection and help reduce fire damage by monitoring Earth from above.
New satellite missions backed by NASA, Google, SpaceX, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and other groups were announced this week and promise to advance early wildfire detection and help reduce fire damage by monitoring Earth from above.
Bend is a national test site to expand prescribed fires close to communities
"There is a balance to be struck," Larkin said. "We know that every time we do a burn in this area we know we are going to introduce smoke into the community. With prescribed fire, we know when that smoke is going to come in and we have the opportunity to limit how much smoke comes into the community. The idea is by doing this work, we prevent future times when we have wildfire smoke coming in for extended periods of time in amounts that make life really unhealthy for the town."
"There is a balance to be struck," Larkin said. "We know that every time we do a burn in this area we know we are going to introduce smoke into the community. With prescribed fire, we know when that smoke is going to come in and we have the opportunity to limit how much smoke comes into the community. The idea is by doing this work, we prevent future times when we have wildfire smoke coming in for extended periods of time in amounts that make life really unhealthy for the town."
I was a wildfire fighter for six years. The reason they’re quitting is simple.
The U.S. Forest Service is losing experience. Federal firefighters are quitting. Leadership is leaving. Recruitment is abysmal. The reason is simple: The government hasn’t significantly raised pay in decades.
The U.S. Forest Service is losing experience. Federal firefighters are quitting. Leadership is leaving. Recruitment is abysmal. The reason is simple: The government hasn’t significantly raised pay in decades.
A conservative Oregon county attempts criminal prosecution of a federal employee
Attorneys for a federal wildland firefighter whose controversial arrest in eastern Oregon by a rural sheriff drew national headlines have successfully delayed his trial while they try to move the case to federal court.
Attorneys for a federal wildland firefighter whose controversial arrest in eastern Oregon by a rural sheriff drew national headlines have successfully delayed his trial while they try to move the case to federal court.
Fire suppression is exacerbating wildfire severity in the US West: Study
“Part of addressing our nation’s fire crisis is learning how to accept more fires burning when safely possible,” co-author Philip Higuera, a University of Montana professor of fire ecology, said in a statement. “That’s as important as fuels reduction and addressing global warming.”
“Part of addressing our nation’s fire crisis is learning how to accept more fires burning when safely possible,” co-author Philip Higuera, a University of Montana professor of fire ecology, said in a statement. “That’s as important as fuels reduction and addressing global warming.”
Fighting every wildfire ensures the big fires are more extreme, and may harm forests’ ability to adapt to climate change
To address the wildfire crisis, fire managers can be less aggressive in suppressing low- and moderate-intensity fires when it is safe to do so. They can also increase the use of prescribed fire and cultural burning to clear away brush and other fuel for fires.
To address the wildfire crisis, fire managers can be less aggressive in suppressing low- and moderate-intensity fires when it is safe to do so. They can also increase the use of prescribed fire and cultural burning to clear away brush and other fuel for fires.
“It feels impossible to stay”: The U.S. needs wildland firefighters more than ever, but the federal government is losing them
For communities throughout the American West, wildland firefighters represent the last line of defense, but that line is fraying because the government decided long ago that they’re not worth very much. The highly trained men and women protecting communities from immolation earn the same base pay as a fast-food server while taking severe risks with their physical and mental health. Despite the mounting public concern over the increasing severity of wildfires, the federal government has not seen fit to meaningfully address these issues. The effects of this chronic neglect have now become strikingly clear as the fire service is finding it difficult to fill its ranks, prefiguring what advocates are calling a national security crisis.
For communities throughout the American West, wildland firefighters represent the last line of defense, but that line is fraying because the government decided long ago that they’re not worth very much. The highly trained men and women protecting communities from immolation earn the same base pay as a fast-food server while taking severe risks with their physical and mental health. Despite the mounting public concern over the increasing severity of wildfires, the federal government has not seen fit to meaningfully address these issues. The effects of this chronic neglect have now become strikingly clear as the fire service is finding it difficult to fill its ranks, prefiguring what advocates are calling a national security crisis.
Team of researchers find wildfire is future to saving California's giant sequoias
"Sequoias have evolved to only really release their seeds from the cones when a fire burns, and not just when any fire burns but only when it burns hot enough to melt the resins and the cones by the millions," Dr. Hanson said.
"Sequoias have evolved to only really release their seeds from the cones when a fire burns, and not just when any fire burns but only when it burns hot enough to melt the resins and the cones by the millions," Dr. Hanson said.
New western training center seeks to grow prescribed fire capacity
Classrooms for training will be set up near prescribed fires in existing offices, or other locations, according to the strategy. Federal officials hope the effort will “increase the pace of prescribed fire training-to-qualification in the Western United States, provide trainees real-time experience in different fuel types and terrain, and ultimately increase national prescribed fire resource capacity.”
Classrooms for training will be set up near prescribed fires in existing offices, or other locations, according to the strategy. Federal officials hope the effort will “increase the pace of prescribed fire training-to-qualification in the Western United States, provide trainees real-time experience in different fuel types and terrain, and ultimately increase national prescribed fire resource capacity.”
Forest Service rekindles burn practices with local tribes
In the early morning on Dec. 19, 2023, in the Long Meadow section of Sequoia National Forest, the U.S. Forest Service joined with members of the Tule River Tribe (Tule) and members from other local tribes to take part in a Tachi Yokuts Tribe (Yokuts) cultural tradition that had not been performed on Forest Service land for over 100 years.
In the early morning on Dec. 19, 2023, in the Long Meadow section of Sequoia National Forest, the U.S. Forest Service joined with members of the Tule River Tribe (Tule) and members from other local tribes to take part in a Tachi Yokuts Tribe (Yokuts) cultural tradition that had not been performed on Forest Service land for over 100 years.
Forest Service warns of budget cuts ahead of a risky wildfire season – what that means for safety
These are some of the reasons why an announcement from U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore on Feb. 8, 2024, is raising concerns. Moore told agency employees to expect budget cuts from Congress in 2024. His letter was thin on details. However, taken at face value, budget cuts could be interpreted as a reduction in the firefighting workforce, compounding recruitment and retention challenges that the Forest Service is already facing.
These are some of the reasons why an announcement from U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore on Feb. 8, 2024, is raising concerns. Moore told agency employees to expect budget cuts from Congress in 2024. His letter was thin on details. However, taken at face value, budget cuts could be interpreted as a reduction in the firefighting workforce, compounding recruitment and retention challenges that the Forest Service is already facing.