With one month left in 2017, the nation has been ravaged by more than 50,000 wildfires that have burned more than 8.9 million acres, the third-highest number of large wildfire acres in the last 10 years.
Fire science underlies all the training and tools used by firefighters today. Fire science is also critical to understand the complex and changing situations encountered by communities and land managers, finding ways to address the rising wildfire risk to save lives, property, our wildlands and money.
Detailed USGS studies on fire patterns and histories on Department of the Interior lands and forests are foundational to restoring fire cycles that will safeguard human lives and property and benefit the richness of land types across the country. USGS’s ability to provide timely and accurate data and maps helps managers mitigate the effects of wildfire.
Visit their new USGS fire webpage and read about specifc projects to learn how USGS fire science is making a difference.
