OOS 2: Connecting Wildfire, People and Global Change in the Pacific Northwest

Session Organizer(s)

• John Kim

  USDA Forest Service
  Corvallis, OR, USA

Moderator(s)

• John Kim

  USDA Forest Service
  Corvallis, OR, USA

Volunteer(s)

• Savannah Fuqua

  Point Reyes National Seashore Association
  Point Reyes, California, United States

In 2020 multiple fast-moving wildfires burned 400,000 hectares Oregon, USA, destroying over 4,000 homes and resulting in many fatalities. The fires were rare but catastrophic events in the moist temperate forests of Oregon. Are the fires connected to climate change? Or do they arise from poor fuels management? And what effects do they leave on the ground, for people and forests? The 2020 wildfires raise poignant ecological and social questions, which resonate with many societies beyond the Pacific Northwest that face infrequent but highly consequential natural events. Their infrequent nature makes the events susceptible to a changing perspective and changing levels of readiness by society. How are we to think of these infrequent but large fires? What will the future bring, and are we prepared? The theme of this session is tackling the evolving perspectives on wildfires and its connections to the moist forests and its human residents. The purpose is to examine the connections between weather/climate and fire, forests, and people, and invigorate discussions in both the ecological and sociological arenas. We start with two in-depth examinations of the 2020 wildfires: an exploration of weather and climate; and an exploration of the long-term ecological context for the fires. Then we explore fires more generally, by examining how fires blow up, what fire severity patterns result and what refugia they leave behind. To examine the connections between wildfire, forests and human society, we examine how catastrophic fires intersect human infrastructure, both in urban and rural settings. Finally, we highlight an emerging dynamic, where invasive species create new connections between forests and non-forests on the forest mosaic landscape.

Presentations:

• ON DEMAND

  Ecological context for large fires in temperate rainforests of the Pacific Northwest
  

  Presenting Author: Matthew J. Reilly – USDA Forest Service
• ON DEMAND

  Extreme fire weather and the historical context of the 2020 Labor Day fires
  

  Presenting Author: David E. Rupp – Oregon State University
• ON DEMAND

  Feeding the fire: Invasion in a forest-mosaic landscape
  

  Presenting Author: Rebecca Lemons – Oregon State University
• ON DEMAND

  Fire within the fire: The role of fire growth rate on patterns of fire refugia, severity and their drivers in forests of the Pacific Northwest
  

  Presenting Author: Cameron E. Naficy – Oregon State University
• ON DEMAND

  Hazards of risk: Using wildfire simulations to identify and plan for plausible extreme events
  

  Presenting Author: Andrew McEvoy – USFS PNW ORISE Fellow
• ON DEMAND

  Identifying rural communities vulnerable to wildfire and evacuation risk
  

  Presenting Author: Alex W. Dye – Oregon State University