Catastrophic wildfires - Pitchstone Waters

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Catastrophic wildfires

A collection of 12 posts

Southern California Burns Again: The 2018 Warning Agencies Ignored

Wild Horse Fire Brigade

Southern California Burns Again: The 2018 Warning Agencies Ignored

In 2018, William E. Simpson II warned that declining herbivore populations and accumulating vegetation could worsen wildfire risks. He revisits that warning and makes the case for testing wild horses as part of fuel management.

Initial Attack Failure: The East Evans Creek Fire and a Familiar Pattern

Wild Horse Fire Brigade

Initial Attack Failure: The East Evans Creek Fire and a Familiar Pattern

With wildfire, the conversation is shifting from suppression to prevention. This opinion piece argues that reducing fine fuels before ignition—rather than relying solely on firefighting after the fact—may be one of the most important challenges facing land managers in the American West.

When Native Grazers Disappear, The Land Burns: How the Collapse of Deer and Wild Horses Turned Small Fires into Megafires — and Why Livestock Alone Cannot Fix It

Wild Horse Fire Brigade

When Native Grazers Disappear, The Land Burns: How the Collapse of Deer and Wild Horses Turned Small Fires into Megafires — and Why Livestock Alone Cannot Fix It

Siskiyou County's wildfire crisis raises a fundamental question: what happens when a landscape loses the large herbivores that once helped shape it?

Reducing Wildfire Fuels at Scale Cost Effectively

Fighting Wildfires

Reducing Wildfire Fuels at Scale Cost Effectively

This lecture outlines a novel cost-effective, humane, nature-based management Plan for Wild Horses that provides benefits for all public lands stakeholders.

Anthropologist Documents How Women and Shepherds Historically Reduced Wildfire Risk in Central Italy

Catastrophic wildfires

Anthropologist Documents How Women and Shepherds Historically Reduced Wildfire Risk in Central Italy

In the last several decades, large forest fires have increasingly threatened communities across the Mediterranean.

bare trees on rocky hill under white sky during daytime

"Invasion Biology"

A Plant That’s Everywhere is Fueling a Growing Risk of Wildfire Disaster

A ubiquitous, resilient and seemingly harmless plant is fueling an increase in large, fast-moving and destructive wildfires in the United States.

Are Prescribed Burns The Silver Bullet Suggested For Wildfires?

Are Prescribed Burns The Silver Bullet Suggested For Wildfires?

“Outside-the-box thinking on prescribed burns, from the founder of Wild Horse Brigade. NOTE: this article was sent to us, and written by, Willian Simpson on January 5, 2022. It is published here with permission from the author. Feature photo is of the the deadly 2018 Klamathon Fire approaching

To Prevent Huge Wildfires, Australia Leans More on Indigenous Experience

"Invasion Biology"

To Prevent Huge Wildfires, Australia Leans More on Indigenous Experience

“As discussed in the article below, in Australia as in the US, the ‘natural systems’ found by Europeans were actually human artifacts, formed and shaped by thousands of years of human impact. NOTE: this article was originally published to WSJ.com on February 16, 2023. It was written by Mike

Wild Horses Can Prevent Out-of-control Wildfires Out West, Researcher Says. Here’s How

Catastrophic wildfires

Wild Horses Can Prevent Out-of-Control Wildfires Out West, Researcher Says. Here’s How

Roaming wild horses may help cut down on the size and intensity of wildfires out west, according to research from the Wild Horse Fire Brigade. NOTE: this article was originally published to SacBee.com on October 18, 2022. It was written by By Brooke Baitinger. Roaming wild horses may help