NW Fire Science July+August Newsletter
Autumn Ellison, Program Coordinator
NW Fire Science Consortium
215 Richardson Hall
Corvallis, OR 97331
nw.fireconsortium@oregonstate.edu Subscribe to this newsletter! July+August 2025 Newsletter --> Hello NW Fire Science Readers,
We have a very big newsletter this time as we merged our July and August editions due to a listserv delivery issue. If you haven't received any of our recent newsletters, you can always find them all here. In addition to the regular recap of new pubs, resources, news, there are some new things to highlight, including our recent fire science and management workshop in WA in June, a save the date for an upcoming workshop early next year, and an opportunity to weigh in fire workforce research. Read on for all the deets!
As always, please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions, resources to highlight in future newsletters, or other news to share; we are always happy to hear from you.
Autumn Ellison
NWFSC Program Coordinator --> Recent publications:
(Published an article? Send it to us!)
New journal articles (pdf available):
- Anderson et al., Fire: Mapping Delayed Canopy Loss and Durable Fire Refugia for the 2020 Wildfires in Washington State Using Multiple Sensors
- Brucker et al., Commun Earth Environ: Wildfires drive multi-year water quality degradation over the western United States
- Cunningham et al., Commun Earth Environ: Wildfires will intensify in the wildland-urban interface under near-term warming
- Danneyrolles et al., Canad. J. For. Res.: Contextualizing recent increases in Canadian boreal wildfire activity: decadal burn rates still within historical variability of the two past centuries
- Edgeley et al., Environmental Hazards: Understanding household experiences with flooding in post-fire environments: risk perceptions, perceived drivers, and mitigation actions
- Edgeley et al., For. Sci.: Preventing Human-Caused Wildfire Ignitions on Public Lands: A Review of Best Practices
- Fallon et al., Int. J. Wildland Fire: A novel methodology to assess fuel treatment effectiveness: application to California’s forests
- Franz & Edgeley, Fire Ecol: Bucking the suppression status quo: incentives to shift the wildfire management paradigm around natural ignitions
- Furniss et al., Environ. Res. Lett.: Wildfire and forest treatments mitigate–but cannot forestall–climate-driven changes in streamflow regimes in a western US mountain landscape
- Harris et al., Ecol Appl: Aspen impedes wildfire spread in southwestern United States landscapes
- Jones et al., Front. For. Glob. Change: A horizon scan to inform research priorities on post-wildfire forest restoration and recovery in the western United States
- Kelp et al. AGU Advances: Effect of Recent Prescribed Burning and Land Management on Wildfire Burn Severity and Smoke Emissions in the Western United States
- Kenig-Ziesler et al., Fire: A Quantitative Analysis of Firefighter Availability and Prescribed Burning in the Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest
- Kirk et al., Natural Hazards Research: Do natural hazard events and disasters trigger political and legislative change? A systematic scoping review of the impacts on commodity production
- Peterson et al., For. Ecol. Manage.: Mechanical mastication and prescribed burning reduce forest fuels and alter stand structure in dry coniferous forests
- Sanna et al., Fire Ecol: Assessing fuel treatments and burn severity using global and local analyses
- Schollaert et al., Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett.: Air Quality Impacts of the January 2025 Los Angeles Wildfires: Insights from Public Data Sources
- Shive et al., Ecosphere: Leveraging wildfire to augment forest management and amplify forest resilience
- Steel et al., Conservation Biology: Finding floral and faunal species richness optima among active fire regimes
- Steelman & Nowell, Int. J. Wildland Fire: Unpacking the pluralism paradox: collaborative governance outcomes in jurisdictionally complex environments
- Wilson & Hurteau, Glob Change Biol: Trees in Fire-Maintained Forests Have Similar Growth Responses to Drought, but Greater Stomatal Conductance Than Trees in Fire-Excluded Forests
- Young et al., Fire Technol: Modeling Neighborhoods as Fuel for Wildfire: A Review
Perspective articles:
- Plumanns-Pouton et al., J. Appl. Ecol.: Fire in focus: Clarifying metrics and terminology for better ecological insight
- Radcliffe et al., For. Ecol. Manage.: Perspectives: Six opportunities to improve understanding of fuel treatment longevity in historically frequent-fire forests
New paywall journal articles (pdf/full text not available via NWFSC site):
- Collins, Agricultural and Forest Meteorology: Decreasing frequency of low and moderate fire weather days may be contributing to large wildfire occurrence in the northern Sierra Nevada
- Courtney et al., For. Sci.: Mapping Community Capacity to Reduce Vulnerability to Wildfire in Colorado, USA
- Pope et al., International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction: Documenting non-governmental organization (NGO) participation and collaboration during community recovery from wildfire
Reports, practitioner guides, & related resources
- Wildfire Smoke Trends and the Air Quality Index, Data from 2000-2024. State of Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. See report (pdf).
- Assessing the Potential for Evaluation of Wildland Fire Models Using Remotely Sensed Data—Summary Proceedings from a U.S. Geological Survey Workshop in 2024. USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5053, Land Management Research Program. Bonner et al.
- Techniques for increasing watershed resilience to wildland fire. SW Fire Science Consortium Working Paper. Seibert & McCormick.
- Shaping Land Use Patterns in the Wildland-Urban Interface: The Role of State and Local Governments in Reducing Exposure to Wildfire Risks. Report. Walls & Wibbenmeyer, Resources for the Future.
- Aging and Wildfire Risk to Communities. Report. Winkler & Mockrin 2025. USDA Economic Research Service.
- Job Exposure to Wildfire Risk in the American West. Report, assesses job growth and wages in the West across five wildfire hazard categories. Joiner et al., 2025. Resources for the Future.
New data and datasest resources:
- Data Descriptor: A global assemblage of regional prescribed burn records — GlobalRx. Hsu et al., Nature Scientific Data. A dataset including 204,517 RxB records from 1979–2023, covering 16 countries and 209 terrestrial ecoregions.
- Growth and stomatal conductance patterns among trees in fire-maintained and fire-excluded forests before, during, and after multiyear drought events. Willson & Hurteau. This data publication contains tabular tree growth and stomatal conductance data collected between 1996 and 2018 from 94 ponderosa pine trees located in the Gila wilderness and Gila and Apache-Sitgreaves National forests in west-central New Mexico.
- Quality assured spatial dataset of wildfire containment firelines and engagement outcomes 2017 to 2024. Arkowitz et al., Nature Sci. Data descriptor.
- Maps of mechanical fuel reduction treatment constraints for the United States Forest Service Wildfire Crisis Strategy landscapes. Woolsey et al., Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive.
In June, NWFSC and the Washington Department of Natural Resources held our 2nd annual workshop aiming to bridge science and management in fire-affected WA landscapes. Over 3 days and 4 locations on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, scientists and land managers from academia, government, non-profits, and the private sector convened for field visits, presentations, and in-depth discussions. Stay tuned for a report on the workshop coming soon!
See the report from last year's workshop here. --> Conferences, workshops, and trainings:
- IUFRO Small Small Scale Forestry and Extension and Knowledge Exchange Joint Conference. Sept. 8-10. Everett, WA. More info.
- Prescribed Fire Detail Assignments with TNC, OR-FIRE. Advance skillsets on 2-week assignments. Sept. 29-Nov. 7; Pendleton, Redmond, or Klamath Falls, OR. Apply by Aug. 24. Learn more.
- The 11th World Conference on Ecological Restoration. Sept. 30-Oct. 4. Denver, CO. Society for Ecological Restoration. More info.
- 17th International Wildland Fire Safety Summit & 7th Human Dimensions of Wildland Fire Conference. The International Association of Wildland Fire has released its 2024 Annual Report and is seeking presentation proposals for upcoming conference. Calgary, Alberta. Oct. 20-23rd. Deadline to submit proposals is May 31st.
- WA DNR Certified Burner Program courses. See website for more information and application form.
- Fall 2025: October 28-30 at the Klickitat Community Center. Apply by 9/25.
- Smoke Management in the Northwest Fall Workshop. 11/19, virtual. EPA Region 10. Learn more.
- 11th International Fire Ecology and Management Congress. Dec. 2-6, 2025. New Orleans, LA. Association for Fire Ecology.
- Adapting Together: Shaping the Future of Fire in the Northwest. March 4-6, 2026. Stevenson, WA. Save the date and stay tuned for more info soon!
- After the Flames Conference. April 6-9, 2026. Cle Elum, WA. Learn more and register early
- International Fire Behaviour and Fuels Conference. April 28-May 1, 2026. Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. More info.
Save the date, mark your calendars, share with your partners, and stay tuned for registration in September! We hope to see you there!
SEE EVENT PAGE --> New & upcoming online events & resources:
- New: Video: Learn more about us! Joint Fire Science Program - What is the Fire Science Exchange Network? YouTube (6m).
- New: Video: Wildfire crews in eastern Oregon: Where the wildfire meets the workforce. Eastern OR Workforce Board. YouTube, 21m.
- New: 8/14 Webinar: Fire: Friend or Foe - Stewardship success in the fire prone West. Learn more and register.
- New: 8/14 Webinar: Post Wildfire Webinar with American Forests: Scaling Resilient Reforestation Through Partnerships. American Forests, After the Flames. Learn more and register.
- New: 8/26 Virtual Workshop: Technical Transfer for Scientists. Intermountain West Joint Venture's Sagebrush Technical Transfer Network. Learn more and register.
- New: 9/3 Webinar: Fire Management Considerations in the Urban Interface. University of Wisconsin. Learn more and register.
- New resource guide: New Resources Available Now for Supporting Smoke Ready Communities. Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network.
- New site: New post-fire resource website: After the Fire Washington. Information and resources for survivors of wildfire in Washington State.
- LANDFIRE Office Hours 2025 Series. 10-11a PDT. More info and register.
- 8/27: FUEL + (LAND)FIRE = SMOKE
- 9/24: IFTDSS & LANDFIRE
- 10/29: Coordinating Smoke Management: Insights from Albany, Georgia’s Pilot Project
- 12/3: LANDFIRE Fuels Process
Help shape fire workforce research in this changing time!
The Ecosystem Workforce Program and FireGeneration Collaborative are researching and convening people around fire resilience workforces (e.g. wildfire response, land stewardship, community resilience).
In light of changes from the ground up to the federal level, we want to be thoughtful. We’re asking workers, program leads, advocates, and scholars to share what questions and issues matter most to you right now.
Your responses will help guide our work! We will not be able to address everything, but we’ll share an anonymous report of what we learn from this survey to all respondents, as well as an opt-in for project updates.
Please take a few minutes to fill out this form - thank you so much!
For any questions or concerns, contact Annabelle Law from the research team at alaw@uoregon.edu.
--> In the News:Due to the rapidly changing nature of fires, we do not cover news related to current/individual wildfires in our newsletter. For current info on fires and smoke in the region, please check out the CURRENT FIRE INFO page on our website.
See also: National Significant Wildland Fire Potential Outlook, August-->November 2025.
Jobs & funding
- NEW! JFSP 2025 Funding Opportunities! See announcements for 5 new funding opportunities, including research, graduate research innovation, and regional science exchange opportunities. Proposals are due Sept. 18.
- Postdoctoral Scholar: Forest Disturbance and Landscape Ecology. University of Washington. Priority review date of August 31. More info.
- 2 ORISE positions based in Wenatchee, WA. USDA-FS Quantitative Landscape Ecology Research Fellowship. Application deadline Sept. 26.
- Project: Evaluate smoke emissions over a broad range of fuel, fuel moisture, and meteorological conditions and prescribed, cultural, and wildfire burn events. Learn more.
- Project: Creates updates in a landscape evaluation toolkit, which include new models for listed and sensitive species. Learn more.
- Lomakatsi Restoration Project is hiring for 3 positions in Ashland, OR (Lead Ecological Forester, Restoration Forester, Stewardship Operations Forester). Learn more.
- WA RC&D is looking for consultants to support the update and development of the Kittitas County CWPP. Due Sept. 5. Learn more.
- Association for Fire Ecology 2025 award nominations are open until September 5. See here for more info!
News & media:
- 8/12: WA families struggle to rebuild after utility-sparked wildfires. Cascade PBS.
8/7: How the Rapid Spread of Misinformation Pushed Oregon Lawmakers to Kill the State’s Wildfire Risk Map. ProPublica.- See more: Interview with ProPublica reporter and insights from Central Oregon. 8/12: Up in Smoke: State fire maps undone by rumor and mistrust. Oregon on the Record, KLCC. 22m.
- 8/6: Washington State Braces for ‘Inevitable’ Megafire. Climate Change May Bring It Sooner. New York Times.
- 8/4: ‘Help is not on the way’. High Country News.
- 8/4: Wildfire smoke is like smoking 'half a pack a day.' Here's how to protect yourself. NPR.
- 8/1: USDA Opens Public Comment Period on Department Reorganization Plan. USDA Press Release.
- 7/31: Oregon’s wildfire bill cut landowner costs, but didn’t raise funds for fighting large fires. OPB.
- 7/28. Fire at the Property Line. Western Confluence, University of Wyoming.
- 7/22: A look at megafires as an Oregon wildfire approaches the 100,000-acre mark. OPB,
- 7/16: Oregon governor declares statewide emergency with intense wildfire threat looming. OPB.
- 7/4: One Way to Fight Wildfires: Burn Your Land Ahead of Time. Wall Street Journal.
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