In this webinar co-hosted by FACNM and the Southwest Fire Science Consortium, Dr. Makoto Kelp discusses how catastrophic wildfires in the western United States pose significant risks to public health, infrastructure, and ecosystems.

As these wildfires become more frequent, there is a growing need for a common methodology to identify suitable locations for prescribed burning aimed at mitigating future wildfire impacts to affected populations and ecosystems. This presentation explores the use of atmospheric chemistry transport modeling, satellite observations, and data from land managers to assess the effectiveness of prescribed burning interventions in reducing potential future wildfire smoke exposure. The presenter offers lessons for states and rural environmental justice communities through a discussion on how implementing preventative prescribed burns in heavily forested areas such as Northern California and the Pacific Northwest may yield substantial net benefits for air quality across the entire western US, while similar interventions in other states would result in comparatively smaller impacts. This presentation is based on a recent publication of the same name: https://doi.org/10.1029/2022EF003468.

View the recording on the FACNM Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/fireadaptednewmexico/
View the recording on the SWFSC YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@swfirescience/videos