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Risk Assessment and Analysis

Displaying 1 - 10 of 175

Enhancing fire emissions inventories for acute health effects studies: integrating high spatial and temporal resolution data

Year of Publication
2025
Publication Type

Background: Daily fire progression information is crucial for public health studies that examine the relationship between population-level smoke exposures and subsequent health events. Issues with remote sensing used in fire emissions inventories (FEI) lead to the possibility of missed exposures that impact the results of acute health effects studies.

Increasing Hydroclimatic Whiplash Can Amplify Wildfire Risk in a Warming Climate

Year of Publication
2025
Publication Type

On January 7 and 8, 2025, a series of wind-driven wildfires occurred in Los Angeles County in Southern California. Two of these fires ignited in dense woody chaparral shrubland and immediately burned into adjacent populated areas–the Palisades Fire on the coastal slopes of the Santa Monica Mountains and the Eaton fire in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains.

Compounding effects of climate change and WUI expansion quadruple the likelihood of extreme-impact wildfires in California

Year of Publication
2025
Publication Type

Previous research has examined individual factors contributing to wildfire risk, but the compounding effects of these factors remain underexplored. Here, we introduce the “Integrated Human-centric Wildfire Risk Index (IHWRI)” to quantify the compounding effects of fire-weather intensification and anthropogenic factors—including ignitions and human settlement into wildland—on wildfire risk.

Temporal and spatial pattern analysis of escaped prescribed fires in California from 1991 to 2020

Year of Publication
2025
Publication Type

Background: Prescribed fires play a critical role in reducing the intensity and severity of future wildfires by systematically and widely consuming accumulated vegetation fuel. While the current probability of prescribed fire escape in the United States stands very low, their consequential impact, particularly the large wildfires they cause, raises substantial concerns.

Carbon, climate, and natural disturbance: a review of mechanisms, challenges, and tools for understanding forest carbon stability in an uncertain future

Year of Publication
2024
Publication Type

In this review, we discuss current research on forest carbon risk from natural disturbance under climate change for the United States, with emphasis on advancements in analytical mapping and modeling tools that have potential to drive research for managing future long-term stability of forest carbon.

Managed burning of forests: Balancing economic incentives, risks, and liability

Year of Publication
2024
Publication Type

Managed burning of forests can provide benefits to society including mitigated wildfire risk, improved habitat, and more. However, adverse outcomes of escaped fire or smoke pose risks. I reviewed the evolution of the law regulating forest management burns, explored the current legal architecture, and analyzed the economic incentives for involved actors, in order to identify policy options.