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Author(s):
Scott L. Stephens, Anthony L. Westerling, Matthew D. Hurteau, M. Zachariah Peery, Courtney Schultz, Sally Thompson
Year Published:

Cataloging Information

Topic(s):
Fire & Climate
Fuels
Fuel Treatments & Effects
Prescribed Fire-use treatments
Recovery after fire
Restoration
Smoke & Air Quality
Smoke Emissions

NRFSN number: 21761
FRAMES RCS number: 61411
Record updated:

The destructive wildfires that occurred recently in the western US starkly foreshadow the possible future of forest ecosystems and human communities in the region. With increases in the area burned by severe wildfire in seasonally dry forests expected to result from climate change, judicious, science‐based fire and restoration strategies will be essential for improving the resilience of forest ecosystems. We argue that fire use treatments (including prescribed fires and managed wildfires) as well as restoration thinning strategies, rather than conflicting with existing environmental objectives, will provide numerous co‐benefits, including enhanced biodiversity, increased water availability, greater long‐term and more sustainable carbon storage, improved forest resilience and adaptation to climate change, and reduced air pollution. Timber production, however, may have to be better aligned with fire management goals to achieve these co‐benefits. Taking immediate actions today to promote positive ecological outcomes in seasonally dry forests should be a primary focus of management, particularly in the western US.

Citation

Stephens, Scott L.; Westerling, A. LeRoy; Hurteau, Matthew D.; Peery, M. Zachariah; Schultz, Courtney A.; Thompson, Sally. 2020. Fire and climate change: conserving seasonally dry forests is still possible. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 18(6):354-360. https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2218

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