
Social-Ecological Consequences of Future Wildfires and Smoke in the West
Over the past two decades, wildfires in western North America have greatly increased in frequency, magnitude and severity. Scientists have documented three main causes - a century of suppression and inadequate forest management that has led to overly dense, fuel-rich forests; climate change, turning woodlands and grasslands into hot, dry tinder boxes; and the spread of urbanization, increasing the...
Over the past two decades, wildfires in western North America have greatly increased in frequency, magnitude and severity. Scientists have documented three main causes - a century of suppression and inadequate forest management that has led to overly dense, fuel-rich forests; climate change, turning woodlands and grasslands into hot, dry tinder boxes; and the spread of urbanization, increasing the...