REBURN: A new tool to model wildfires in the Pacific Northwest and beyond

A new tool, REBURN, can simulate large forest landscapes and wildfire dynamics over decades or centuries under different wildfire management strategies.

Dryer, warmer night air is making some Western wildfires more active at night

Firefighters report that Western wildfires are starting earlier in the morning and dying down later at night, hampering their ability to recover and regroup before the next day’s flareup. A study shows why: The drying power of nighttime air over much of the Western U.S. has increased dramatically in the past 40 years.

Reducing Wildfire Risks for Better Management and Resource Allocation

As wildfires become deadlier, larger and more expensive, there is strong interest in better risk governance. Managing future wildfire risk requires an interface between human decision processes and knowledge about climate trends related to fire, as well as humans’ abilities to anticipate wildfire potential and mitigation approaches are critical. Several presentations at the 2019 Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) Annual Meeting will explore analyses of past fire seasons, projections for the future and approaches for decision making aimed at mitigating risk.