Tag: wildland fire

Researchers and land managers have long known that reducing the amount of forest fuel helps reduce wildfire severity. But not all fuel is created equal, and the vertical location of that fuel may matter more than the sheer amount, especially when weather conditions are hot, dry and windy. Recent research from NAU, using data collected from NASA spaceborne lidar, shows that large-scale maps of ladder fuels can help predict areas at greatest risk from wildfires and suggests that a focus on reducing ladder fuels may be the most direct means to reduce wildfire severity.