America, Still Burning

Jan 01, 2025


In the United States, particularly over the past century, the stewardship of fire has been inadequate—threatening communities, economies, and ecosystems. The early 20th century marked the beginning of the nation’s modern fire crisis. The "Big Burn" of 1910, a wildfire that ravaged over 3 million acres in just two days, demonstrated the destructive power of fire on an unprecedented scale.[i]

It wasn't until 1947 that the U.S. government began addressing the fire problem.[ii] The Truman administration's “White House Conference on Fire Prevention” was the first federal effort to recognize the significance of the situation, spurred by alarming statistics: an average of 10,000 fire-related deaths annually and billions of dollars in damages. This national reckoning led to ongoing research into fire prevention, culminating in the Fire Research and Safety Act of 1968, which funded new strategies to reduce fire risks.[iii]

The release of the “America Burning” report in 1973 marked a pivotal moment. It outlined a century-long struggle with fire in our country, highlighting not only the human toll but also the nation's growing complacency in managing fire hazards. By the 1970s, firefighting had become the deadliest occupation, and fire-related fatalities continued to rise, reinforcing the need for comprehensive fire management policies.[iv]

The frequency and intensity of wildfires have doubled over the past 20 years.[v] Data on fire trends also suggest that extreme fire incidents could rise by up to 14% by the year 2030, 30% by 2050, and 50% by the end of the century.[vi] Recent government action has provided some hope. The Biden administration’s infrastructure bill allocated significant resources for fire risk reduction, and a 10-year plan was launched to protect 50 million acres of high-risk areas near vulnerable communities. However, wildfires now cost the U.S. between $394 and $893 billion annually, equating to 2-4% of the nation's GDP.[vii]

The US fire problem, particularly in California, has been raging for over a century. Addressing it will require more than just policy changes or technological innovation. It will take a sustained, long-term commitment to better stewardship of our natural resources, thoughtful adaptation to changing climates, and continuous investment in fire education, research, safety, and training.

When we started this project in August of 2024, we were focused on the fact that 18 out of the 20 most destructive fires in California’s history have happened in the last 25 years, and 15 of them in the last 10 years. 

Our first episode was recorded here in Southern California on December 11, 2024, two days after the Franklin fire ignited in Malibu. No one could have imagined what was to come less than a month later. Everything changed when the Eaton and Palisades fires altered an entire population's relationship to wildfire.

THE FIRE PROBLEM: SEASON ONE

SOME FACTS

  • California’s fire problem is long-standing, dating back to the 1700s when Spanish colonial authorities banned indigenous fire management practices, a decision that arguably worsened the state’s vulnerability to massive blazes.[viii]
  • In California, 14 of the 20 largest wildfires on record have occurred over the past 15 years.[ix]
  • The 2018 wildfire season was the deadliest and most destructive wildfire season on record in California. 2020 was the largest wildfire season recorded in California's modern history with more than 4% of the state's total land burning in a single year. That year, the “August Complex” fire burned over 1 million acres. 2021 saw the destruction of 2.6 million acres.[x]
  • As California gets hotter and drier, the skies succumb to blankets of choking smoke that drive Californians inside and endanger workers from agriculture to construction. As of 9/18/24 California has already had 460,153 Total Emergency responses, 6,604 Wildfires, and the state has lost 995,064 Acres to the fire problem.[xi]
  • Fires in the 21st century are now burning 22% more often than the highest rate of burning reached in the previous 2,000 years. That previous record was established around 1,100 years ago, during what’s known as the Medieval Climate Anomaly.[xii]

REFERENCES

Image: Stockbridge, Nellie; Barnard, T. N. (Thomas Nathan), "Forest Fire Aftermath, 1910 - Placer Creek after the fire. [03]," 1910. The Big Burn Collection, University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives.

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