Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change

Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change

Many forest ecologists say the U.S. Forest Service is hampered by an outdated approach to prescribed fires, a key tool for reducing the threat of megafires made worse by climate change.

Ecologists say federal wildfire plans dangerously out of step with climate change

The federal Government Accountability Office is launching an investigation after U.S. Forest Service-controlled burns that escaped caused the largest wildfire ever recorded in New Mexico.

Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change

A scorched structure and vehicles stand on a property mostly destroyed by the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire on June 2, near Las Vegas, N.M. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)The federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) is launching an investigation after U.S. Forest Service-controlled burns that escaped caused the largest wildfire ever recorded in New Mexico.The GAO is examining controlled burn policies at the Forest Service and other fede…

Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change

Many forest ecologists say the U.S. Forest Service is hampered by an outdated approach to prescribed fires, a key tool for reducing the threat of megafires made worse by climate change.

Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change

In a recent letter, Oregon U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden chastised the U.S. secretaries of Interior and Agriculture for not moving fast enough to hire more firefighters amid a staffing crisis and to boost pay. And he implored them to answer basic questions about wildfire mitigation strategy and spending despite a record infusion of new federal money.

Ecologists say federal wildfire plans are dangerously out of step with climate change

Many forest ecologists say the U.S. Forest Service is hampered by an outdated approach to prescribed fires, a key tool for reducing the threat of megafires made worse by climate change.