Forests & Fire

Climate change is expected to cause additional forest mortality and long-term transformation of forested landscapes across the Northwest by increasing wildfire, insect outbreaks, tree diseases and drought stress.

Overview of the impacts of climate change on forests in the Northwest

News, multimedia & research spotlights

NYTimes: Reconsidering Outdoor Travel in the West, as Wildfires Burn

Excessive heat and wildfires could disrupt the booming outdoor travel industry, as travelers now have to take a hotter and longer fire season into account.
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Wash. Post: In a summer of smoke, a small town wonders: How are we going to do better than survive?

Wildfires are burning across the American West, with smoke stretching across much of the nation. In Winthrop, Wash., residents are used to the haze.
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Smokesman-Review: ‘Burnt, like I am'

After fires burn through Colville Reservation, efforts underway to recover, adapt

Siblings Jimmy Timentwa and Elaine Timentwa Emerson describe the fires that burned through the Colville Reservation. Dr. Crystal Raymond is quoted. A brief on climate change, created for the Colville Tribes, is referenced.
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Seattle Times: We need unity and a multifaceted approach to West’s wildfires

Op-ed by Dr. Crystal Raymond

Crystal Raymond, climate adaptation specialist and fire ecologist, has fielded a lot of questions over the last few weeks on the causes of wildfires in the West. In this Seattle Times opinion piece she pushes for unity to address the root causes of the wildfire problem.
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What we’re working on now

Small Forest Landowner Adaptation Guidance

We are developing regionally-specific guides for small forest landowners that describe the most immediate climate impacts on forests and potential actions landowners can take to increase climate resilience. We have completed a guide for western Washington, are working on one for eastern Washington, and hope to do additional regions in the Northwest. Each guide takes into account the specific climate and ecology of the region.

These guides are geared toward small forest landowners in the Northwest, as well as organizations (non-profits, conservation districts, local governments) that support these landowners to manage their forests.
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Cascadia Cimate Adaptation Strategy

The Cascadia Partner Forum and the UW Climate Impacts Group are partnering to develop the Cascadia Climate Adaptation Strategy, which identifies key actions for facilitating coordinated climate adaptation across the political and jurisdictional boundaries that divide the Cascadia region. The Strategy offers a collaborative, large-landscape complement to the more local climate adaptation efforts of the many organizations and partnerships working in Washington and British Columbia.
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Informing Climate-Adaptive Management Responses to Forest Fires in Western Cascadia

Climate Impacts Group scientists are conducting this study to inform wildfire risk and adaptation options for forest resources and wildland-urban interface communities in western Cascadia (western Washington and northwestern Oregon). We will identify the historical climatic drivers of westside wildfires, and the future likelihood of these conditions under climate change. This research will support state and local government agencies, tribes, and private forest owners in western Cascadia engaged in forest management and wildfire risk reduction activities, including natural resource managers and emergency management personnel.
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Selected data, tools & completed projects

Forest Management Tools To Maximize Snow Retention under Climate Change

We analyzed the characteristics of forests that slow or accelerate snow melt across the diverse climates of the Pacific Northwest. From this data we created a decision tree model, developed alongside regional forest and water managers, to help them strategically manage forests to maximize snow retention and conserve a vital source of water for the summer months.
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Managing Western Wash. Wildfire Risk in a Changing Climate

The Climate Impacts Group and the Northwest Climate Science Adaptation Center convened regional partners to discuss the increasing risk of wildfires in western Washington, and opportunities for adaptation actions. A report and webinar, developed based on that workshop, are designed to provide more information to decision makers regarding the context and risks of westside fires in a changing climate, and highlight key areas of research and collaboration that will be necessary to manage Western Washington wildfire risk in the future.
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Building a Practice-based Research Agenda for Wildfire Smoke and Health

In October 2018, the Climate Impacts Group co-hosted a Wildfire Smoke Risk Communication Stakeholder Synthesis Symposium to identify and prioritize needs, barriers, and solutions to promote effective wildfire smoke risk communication and risk reduction across Washington state. This symposium brought together 75 regional stakeholders representing over 30 agencies, organizations, communities and tribes to share lessons learned from recent wildfire seasons, to provide information on the current state of the science related to wildfire smoke exposure and health, and to facilitate collaborations between researchers and practitioners involved with wildfire smoke across the state.
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All forest and fire-related projects and publications

PROJECTS  WILDFIRE PUBLICATIONS  TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEM PUBLICATIONS

 

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