Wildfire Risk In California

On March 6,2017, the Panhandle of Texas caught on fire. The wildfire had burned over 500,000 acres of land. Most of this land includes livestock and feed for livestock. Several people had died during this traumatic event, because they were trying to save their livestock and land Cortana (2017). The wildfires burning in Texas can be seen from space, they are that huge Cortana (2017).

For as long as mankind can conceive, fire has been a remarkable tool to conquer. When controlled, it provides necessary heat, energy, and fuel for a consumer to use; however, when fire goes unattended, it has the potential to become a wholly destructive element. The more western states of America, such as Utah and Colorado, have repeatedly experienced this concept in its most devastating form: wildfires. A wildfire is generally considered to be difficult to control and fast moving, swallowing anything that lay in its path, including forest or human habitat. As human incursion reaches more remote areas in wooded mountains, wildfires pose a serious threat to high-end homes and secluded cabins. The untamed nature of these fires also allows them to creep into subdivisions and endanger more

Joan Didion in her essay, “The Santa Ana” and Linda Thomas in her essay, “Brush Fire” describes the Santa Ana in two opposing stands with similar moves. Didion's purpose in writing her essay for the Santa Ana is to inform her readers. She informs them about the Santa Ana, the effect the winds have on human behavior, and how they have to live with the Santa Ana. Thomas writes her essay to engage readers on the Santa Ana’s effect on brushes. She gives details on how the Santa Ana causes natural brush fires and the beauty it is able to create in the aftermath.

In 2016 “there have been more than 4,000 wildfires in California, with well over 300,000 acres of land burned” (Kieran Cooke).

Thomas describes scenes of “orange flames” lighting the sky and families and friends watching the fires with “soft drinks” and “camera’s”. . At the same time, Didion describes the sky as “a yellow cast, the kind of light sometimes called ‘earthquake weather’ For Thomas, the fires are more than just the burning of “chaparral” and medical problems, there are memories that are irreplaceable that only the people who experience the fires can attest to. In the news, most people will hear about everything that has been burned down along with the side effects, such as sinus infections, etc. that are caused by the fire. However, people living outside of California don’t know the experiences and memories, such as families sitting together or young couples kissing that means so much to the native Californians. In Thomas’s “Brush Fire” , she shows that people who do not experience the winds and fires don’t understand that is it more than just burning something; it is a time for people in the community to come together. Science establishes both authors’ arguments and perspectives, however, Thomas uses it to show the vital role it plays in nature, specifically for the plants germination in seed pods. Furthermore, she explains how humans, without respect for nature, get in the way of these fires. It wouldn’t be a problem for many, if land developers took into account the chaparral zones, which is the direct path

The rising number of high severity wildfires in California has significant ecological, economic, and health impacts. Many western American forests are adapted to frequent low severity fires. However, the majority of these forests, and particularly the mixed conifer forests of California, are not adapted to high intensity fires and do not possess fire resistance adaptations such as serotinous cones to protect seeds. Consequently, high severity fires have significant negative impacts on California forests, and the absence of low severity fires has considerably altered many fundamental ecosystem processes (Miller et al. 2008). Prior to 1900, low severity fires would burn every 6-15 years. Low severity fires are generally non-lethal, have minimal change to the overstory, and kill mainly small trees. In the past, these fires were started naturally by lightning, or by Native Americans who used low severity fires to manage the forests.

The focus of this lesson will be teaching the students to examine the history of wildland fires and their impact on society in America and in their community. Students will explore different approaches to living with fire and will examine various fire management techniques including prescribed fire, fire suppression, and fire prevention. They will take a closer look at the Copper King Fire in Montana, and will conduct a research project of wildfire history in another state. Students will also gain a better understanding of the role of fire in a particular culture and the importance of wildfire in the ecosystem. They will also understand ways to reduce wildfire risk around their home and community. Furthermore, students will increase their knowledge

Because most greenhouse gases would remain in the atmosphere for a long period of time, the temperature of the earth will be continuously rising. If global heat-trapping emissions proceed at a medium to high rate, temperatures in California are expected to rise 4.7 to 10.5°F by the end of the century1. With the rise of temperature, the climate of California would also be changed. California has large area of forest and farmland, hundreds of miles of coastline, large amount of snowpack, and other natural wonders. And these special treasures of nature are especially at risk2. So it is very necessary to understand the strategies of California to combat climate change.

Wildfires have always been a part of our lives on this rock we call Earth. Over the years we have developed tried and true ways to battle and extinguish them, but in the recent past it has become more and more of a problem considering their increase in size and weather patterns. These factors have been termed with a phase every American knows all too well, “Global Warming!” The western half of the United States has had to deal with these fires more than any other area of the country. Of the western half, the state of Colorado has seen its share of some of the worst wildfires. Since the 1970 's the normal number of flames in excess of 1,000 sections of land every year has almost quadrupled in Arizona and Idaho, and has multiplied in

Earth’s atmosphere is surrounded by thin layers of gasses, 78% is made of nitrogen, 21% is made up of oxygen, 0.4% orgon, and 0.03% is made up of carbon dioxide. Wildfires, Earthquakes, Floods, Tsunamis, Landslides and Coastal Changes are natural hazards in different California regions. California is interconnected water systems serves over 30 million people irrigates over 5,680,000 acres of farmland.

California is notorious for its wildfires. In the last two decades San Diego County has faced some of the most destructive firestorms in state history (Brainard, 2007). Ron Roberts, chairman of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, describes the county’s disposition as, "We have a very dangerous, unpredictable situation. We have some of the highest temperatures, some of the driest landscape conditions, and some of the most powerful winds - all ingredients for a perfect firestorm (Pesce, 2007)." In 2003, San Diego County was overwhelmed by firestorms, including the Cedar Fire, and at that time it was the worst in state history. However, in 2007 San Diego was once again devastated by firestorms, but this time more mighty than the preceding (Ekard, Tuck, Jr., & Steffen, 2003). San Diego has had its fair share of practice at managing firestorm response actions. The 2003 firestorms proved that there were numerous inefficiencies within the county’s emergency response plan, while the 2007 firestorms emergency response revealed the lessons learned from 2003 and improvements implemented were effective. The threat of future firestorms in San Diego County are inevitable due to the continuing drought, Santa Anna winds, climate changes, and human behavior (Pesce, 2007). Having a well-constructed Incident Command System (ICS) and the trained personnel to execute its model is the most effective measure to mitigate the degree of life lost and property damage in a disaster incident. A

The county of San Diego is a unique haven to hundreds of state and federally recognized endangered, threatened, or rare plant and animal species (The Nature Conservancy, n.d.). San Diego is also a territory with a long history of environmentally catastrophic wildfires. The Cedar and Witch Creek Fires are two of the most recent and notorious wildfires in California history for their degree of damage in terms of acreage burned and overall expense (The City of San Diego, n.d.). During and after these massive wildfire events is a significant public health concern related to respiratory health from the effects of smoke and ash debris. The challenges presented in mitigating and managing these health issues extends into county budget, public education, and cohesive multi-agency prevention and recovery efforts. Moreover, participatory efforts from the residents of San Diego County is key to the success of mitigating health risks presented by wildfire smoke and ash debris (Phillips, 2009, p. 420).

The article discusses the conditions in San Joaquin Valley after the state’s largest fire left it covered in dust. On the one hand, the fire so far has spared lives and homes, but on the other hand, it has caused dangerous drops in air quality that can cause public health problems and threaten life. It discusses what many of the conditions are like since the drought has begun and how the longer wildfire season means more smoke in the air more often. Dr. Jain, an associate professor at the University of California, San Francisco said that, “It’s kind of a worst nightmare situation.” I agree because the amount of soot in the air is dangerous for all forms of life and can cause a number of respiratory health problems that can be fatal. Dr. Malik

California is one of the states affected by this problem. Every-time I watch the news, I see that Californians are coming with new technology to deal with this issue. We were experiencing lack of rain in Colorado Springs during the fires more than 2 years ago. Not only we lacked of rain fall, but the carbon release from the fires was way above of what the trees can absorb. The more fires we have in an area, the more carbon capture and release unbalance we have in the area adjacent. The quantitative data shown in your thread is a great method to find out more about this research. Great post!

Humans have been changing the Western forests' fire system since the settlement by the Europeans and now we are experiencing the consequences of those changes. During the summer of 2002, 6.9 million acres of forests was burnt up in the West (Wildland Fires, 1). This figure is two times the ten year annual average, and it does not look like next summer will be any better (Wildfire Season, 1).