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  1. Do fuel treatments reduce wildfire suppression costs and property damages? Analysis of suppression costs and property damages in U.S. National Forests

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    Author(s): John Loomis; José J. Sánchez; Armando González-Cabán; Douglas Rideout; Robin Reich
    Date: 2019
    Source: Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-261 (English). Albany, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station: 70-84.
    Publication Series: General Technical Report (GTR)
    Station: Pacific Southwest Research Station
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    Description

    This paper reports the results of two hypotheses tests regarding whether fuel reduction treatments using prescribed burning and mechanical methods reduces wildfire suppression costs and property damages. To test these two hypotheses data was collected on fuel treatments, fire suppression costs and property damages associated with wildfires on United States National Forests over a five year period. Results of the multiple regressions show that only in California did mechanical fuel treatment reduce wildfire suppression costs. However, the results of our second hypothesis tests that fuel treatments, by making wildfires less damaging and easier to control, may reduce property damages (i.e., structures—barns, out buildings, etc. and residences lost) seems to be confirmed for acres treated with prescribed burning. In three out of the three geographic regions of the U.S. which experienced significant property losses, prescribed burning lowered the number of structures damaged by wildfire.

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    Citation

    Loomis, John; Sánchez, José J.; González-Cabán, Armando; Rideout, Douglas; Reich, Robin. 2019. Do fuel treatments reduce wildfire suppression costs and property damages? Analysis of suppression costs and property damages in U.S. National Forests. In: González-Cabán, Armando; Sánchez, José J., tech. eds. Proceedings of the fifth international symposium on fire economics, planning, and policy: ecosystem services and wildfires. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-261 (English). Albany, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station: 70-84.

    Keywords

    mechanical fuel reduction, prescribed burning, property damage, wildfire suppression costs

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