On this edition of Your Call’s One Planet Series, we have a conversation about why we should change our approach to fighting wildfires.
According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), the Los Angeles fires that started on Jan. 7 have burned over 40,000 acres. Of these fires, the Palisades fire and the nearly contained Eaton fire reached record levels of destruction, with more than 15,000 structures destroyed and thousands of people displaced from their homes.
In 2024, the Forest Service and Department of the Interior combined spent more than $4 billion on wildfire suppression, and a little more than $700 million on preparedness. We also talk about the health effects of fire smoke on firefighters.
Guests:
Lazo Gitchos, wildland firefighter writer, and researcher
Lisa Patel, executive director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, and Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Stanford School of Medicine, and a member of Science Moms
Resources:
The Nation: It’s Time to Rethink Everything About How We Fight Fires
Stanford Report: What we know about the health effects of wildfire
UCLA: Chemicals produced by fires show potential to raise cancer risk