Human Dimensions of Fire
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Scaling up climate-adaptation in wildfire-prone watersheds requires innovative partnerships and funding. Water utilities are one stakeholder group that could play a role in these efforts. The overarching purpose of this study was to understand water utility engagement in wildfire mitigation efforts in the western United States. We conducted an online survey of water utilities in nine states and received 173 useable responses. While most (68%) respondents were concerned or very concerned about future wildfire events and the impact of wildfire on their operations, only 39% perceived their organization as responsible for mitigating wildfire risk. Federal land ownership decreased feeling responsible for wildfire mitigation, while concern for and information on wildfire increased feeling responsible for mitigation. The perception of response efficacy of mitigation actions for the 68 water utilities engaged in wildfire risk mitigation activities was very high, with most agreeing that mitigation actions are effective. Self-efficacy to implement mitigation actions, however, was mixed, with most utilities wanting more information on wildfire risk and impacts to watershed services. The most reported wildfire mitigation actions were forest thinning and stream restoration. Water utilities engaging in these actions typically partnered with government agencies or other water utilities to complete the work and funded these activities through water user fees and grants. Our findings suggest that water utility engagement in wildfire mitigation for water security could be increased through providing more assessments of wildfire risk to water utilities and through more outreach and engagement with water utilities operating on federal lands.
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The research presented in this article utilized mixed-method, residential surveys of property owners in Kittitas County, Washington, to explore influences on support for wildfire mitigation requirements and performance of voluntary mitigations on private lands. We found a high degree of variability in support for regulatory approaches, including relatively low levels of support for building or retrofitting regulations and a moderate level of support for vegetation management regulations. Perceptions about wildfire risk sources or public land management, past performance of wildfire mitigation actions, and support for shared, locally managed mitigations all correlated with support for differing regulatory approaches. We also found that performance of voluntary mitigation actions correlated with increasing wildfire program participation, differed among part-time or full- time residents, and were influenced by proximity to nearby property boundaries. Our results suggest that the most supported strategy in the study area may be the establishment of local, tax funded districts that encourage voluntary mitigation actions tailored to local circumstances. We conclude the paper by comparing our results to existing lessons from wildfire social science.
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Theory predicts that effective environmental governance requires that the scales of management account for the scales of environmental processes. A good example is community wildfire protection planning. Plan boundaries that are too narrowly defined may miss sources of wildfire risk originating at larger geographic scales whereas boundaries that are too broadly defined dilute resources. Although the concept of scale (mis)matches is widely discussed in literature on risk mitigation as well as environmental governance more generally, rarely has the concept been rigorously quantified. We introduce methods to address this limitation, and we apply our approach to assess scale matching among Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs) in the western US. Our approach compares two metrics: (1) the proportion of risk sources encompassed by planning jurisdictions (sensitivity) and (2) the proportion of area in planning jurisdictions in which risk can originate (precision). Using data from 852 CWPPs and a published library of 54 million simulated wildfires, we demonstrate a trade-off between sensitivity and precision. Our analysis reveals that spatial scale match—the product of sensitivity and precision—has an n-shaped relationship with jurisdiction size and is maximal at approximately 500 km2. Bayesian multilevel models further suggest that functional scale match—via neighboring, nested, and overlapping planning jurisdictions—may compensate for low sensitivity. This study provides a rare instance of a quantitative framework to measure scale match in environmental planning and has broad implications for risk mitigation as well as in other environmental governance settings.
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Before workshops on prescribed fire for private lands, we surveyed participants in six prescribed fires on private lands workshops in the Central Sierra Nevada from 2018 to 2019 (N = 172). We found that participants “want to use” pile burns and broadcast prescribed fires more than other land management treatments. There was also a strong interest in mechanical treatments in contrast to low interest in grazing. Some participants had “heard about” and “want to use” some pathways to apply prescribed fire on their lands, including government programs, contractors, friends and family, and Prescribed Burn Associations (PBAs). People had multiple objectives for their prescribed fire goals, and the majority wanted to promote ecosystem health, e.g., reduce fire hazards, foster natural land health, and reduce invasive plants. Perceived barriers were greatest for safety, cost, and resources while fewer participants perceived permits as a barrier.
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Public support is crucial for successful fuels management, but vocal opposition can mask broader yet quieter community acceptance. It is helpful for land managers to have a picture of all perspectives, not just the most vocal ones.
Webinar recording (50:31).
Led by Hawai’i Wildfire Management Organization (www.hawaiiwildfire.org), this webinar equips you with essential strategies to prepare, respond, and stay safe in the face of wildfires. From creating defensible spaces to crafting evacuation plans, we’ll cover it all. Don’t wait until it’s too late – arm yourself with knowledge and confidence. Register now and take the first step toward wildfire readiness!
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Wildland firefighters are likely to experience heightened risks to safety, health, and overall well-being as changing climates increase the frequency and intensity of exposure to natural hazards. Working at the intersection of natural resource management and emergency response, wildland firefighters have multidimensional careers that often incorporate elements from disparate fields to accomplish the tasks of suppressing and preventing wildfires. Thus, they have distinctly different job duties than other firefighters (e.g., structural firefighters) and experience environmental health risks that are unique to their work. We conducted a systematic scoping review of scientific literature that addresses wildland firefighter environmental health. Our goal was to identify studies that specifically addressed wildland firefighters (as opposed to firefighters in a broader sense), geographic and demographic trends, sample sizes, patterns in analysis, and common categories of research.
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To advance transformative solutions to this complex fire challenge, we propose four principles for conducting transdisciplinary fire research: (1) embrace complexity, (2) promote diverse ways of knowing fire, (3) foster transformative learning, and (4) practice problem-centered research. These principles emerged from our experience as a group of early-career researchers who are embedded within and motivated by today’s complex fire challenge within British Columbia (BC), Canada. In this forum piece, we first describe the four principles and then apply the principles to two case studies: (1) BC, a settler-colonial context experiencing increased size, severity, and impacts of wildfires, and (2) our ECR discussion group, a space of collective learning and transformation. In doing so, we present a unique contribution that builds on existing efforts to develop more holistic fire research frameworks and demonstrates how application of these principles can promote transdisciplinary research and transformation towards coexistence with fire, from local to global scales.
Webinar recording.
Sarah McCaffrey, retired in 2022 after 20 years as a fire social scientist with the US Forest Service where her research focused on understanding the social dynamics of fire management. This included research projects that examined the role of risk perception and risk attitudes, social acceptability of prescribed fire, homeowner mitigation decisions, evacuation decision making, risk communication, and agency-community interactions during fires. Since retirement she has been involved with a number of research and practitioner efforts to improve future fire outcomes including as an adviser to the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation’s Wildfire Resilience Initiative and Board member for Fire Adapted Colorado. She received her PhD in 2002 from the University of California at Berkeley where her dissertation examined Incline Village, Nevada homeowner views and actions in relation to defensible space and fuels management.