This paper examines how chaparral thinning used to create defensible space in the southern California WUI affects ecological soil function, and evaluates tradeoffs between fuel reduction and ecosystem impacts, with implications for limiting mechanical thinning distances to 30 m or less.
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Read MoreA new paper by USGS and partners investigated why some California wildfires are destructive and others are not.
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Read MoreTo demonstrate where resources might be better allocated across the state, these authors examined the distribution of area burned and structures lost across five different California vegetation types and how the distribution of fire has changed in these landscapes through time.
Read MoreTwo years after the 2015 Wragg Fire burned the Reserve, a restored public trail was reopened for use. The authors used surveys to determine public perceptions of fire in this chaparral ecosystem.
Read MoreAlthough the causes of the fires vary by ecoregion and require location- and driver-specific management tools, there are effective ways to reduce both structure exposure and structure sensitivity to fire across all of California.
Read MoreHardening homes was strongly correlated with structure survival in the Wildland Urban Interface. The best ways to “harden homes” are to: enclose eaves and use multiple pane windows; use fire-resistant exterior siding, composite deck materials, and fine-mesh vent screens.
Read MoreThe WUI is often synonymous with fire risk to buildings, but this research suggests that this is not the case in all fire-prone states. While fire outreach was often present near areas where buildings are destroyed by wildfire, many communities are established after major fires.
Read MoreAbstract
The wildland-urban interface (WUI) is the area where houses and wildland vegetation meet or intermingle, and where wildfire problems are most pronounced. Here we report that the WUI in the United States grew rapidly from 1990 to 2010 in terms of both number of new houses (from 30.8 to 43.4 million; 41% growth) and land area (from 581,000 to 770,000 km2; 33% growth), making it the fastest-growing land use type in the conterminous United States. The vast majority of new WUI areas were the result of new housing (97%), not related to an increase in wildland vegetation. Within the perimeter of recent wildfires (1990–2015), there were 286,000 houses in 2010, compared with 177,000 in 1990. Furthermore, WUI growth often results in more wildfire ignitions, putting more lives and houses at risk. Wildfire problems will not abate if recent housing growth trends continue.
This research brief discusses national trends in rebuilding and new development after wildfire, as well as policy choices and adaptation measures local governments and communities pursued after fire, through case studies.
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Both Southern France and California have large amounts of housing in the Wildland Urban Interface where local vegetation is highly dense and fire adapted. This research brief compares the land use policies used to reduce the exposure of homes to wildfire in these two locations.
Read MoreThe design and materials used in construction is critical to preventing structure loss during wildland urban interface (WUI) fires. This research helps planners and homeowners by ranking specific construction materials by fire safety effectiveness, then comparing their use to landscape-scale design attributes.
Read MoreIn Southern California, fuel treatment strategies often put fire risk reduction and biodiversity conservation goals at odds with each other. In response to this conflict, two of our briefs (Syphard et al. 2016; Butsic et al. 2016) explore a novel new approach.
Read MoreThese presentations are meant to provide background and fire prevention mitigation strategies for land use planners utilizing current science findings of the day. These three presentations provide targeted information and background that may be useful for a variety of planners.
Read MoreThis research brief discusses the lessons learned from the costly fires of 2003 in Southern California. Recommendations on future fuel reduction strategies and placement are discussed.
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Read MoreThis study examined how housing location and arrangement affects the likelihood that a structure will be lost when a wildfire occurs.
Read MoreThis study found that the predictive capability of the commonly used Burning Index was quite limited and proposed an index with improved predictive ability for Los Angeles County, California.
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There are many WUI fire videos available on YouTube. Topics range from firefighter safety to efficient water use to defensible space.
Read MoreThis one-hour class covers information on different home design and building material issues relevant to wildfire safety for homeowners in fire-prone areas.
Read MoreThis video, produced by the San Luis Obispo FireSafe Council, provides an overview of how and why to create a fire-definsible space around a home.
Read MoreThese videos from the University of Nevada Reno and University of California Cooperative Extension provide information for homeowners in wildfire-prone areas on preventing wind-borne embers from starting.
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The California Fire Science Consortium is divided into 4 geographic regions and 1 wildland-urban interface (WUI) team. Statewide coordination of this program is based at UC Berkeley.
View the about page to learn more >
This regional Fire Science Exchange is one of 15 regional fire science exchanges.
Link to another exchange:
