Burn, maybe, burn? Characterizing windows of opportunity for prescribed pile and broadcast burning in northern California

Photo Credit

USDA Forest Service photo by Sharon Hood

Firefighters conduct a prescribed burn on the Lassen National Forest in California.

We often hear about the need to expand the pace and scale of hazardous fuel treatments that can reduce wildfire risk. Prescribed burning is one of the most important management tools for getting that work done. By looking at records of past burns and their associated weather conditions in northern California, our team gained a better understanding of what constitutes a suitable burn window, and we identified areas and times of year most favorable for prescribed burning.

We took a data-driven approach to define the environmental conditions needed to open up a "burn window." Because we worked with actual known "go-burn" decisions from an extensive dataset of burn permits, we didn't have to make assumptions about what counts as a burn day. Instead, we let the "go-burn" decisions of thousands of burn practitioners identify conducive weather conditions for prescribed burning in northern California.

Our findings are intended to help with prescribed fire planning and operations across many areas that are at high risk of wildfires. Where we have similar data on historical activities and conducive weather conditions, we can expand our analyses to regions beyond northern California.