Is there a way we can prevent them from occurring in the first place, or is it inevitable during the summer months?
In: 29
Wildfires are a common natural occurrence. Their causes can vary. Frequently the cause is lightning strikes a dry patch of ground with dense dead fallen branches or leaves. With the right wind and temperature conditions the flames can spread far and wide. However, occasionally fires are caused by reckless people. Either way once it grows enough the fire takes on something of a life of its own.
The rising heat from the fire will draw air in and up and create enough wind to feed itself. On average a wildfire spreads at a rate just over 14mph. That’s faster than most people can run, and the flames are going in every direction. With the wind they go even faster. This makes them hard to get out in front of. Even worse is the disturbance they create in the local weather also makes them hard to fully predict where they’ll go. So getting out ahead of it is tough. Not to mention there aren’t enough Wildland fire fighter and tanker aircraft to fully contain the truly massive fires. To say nothing of getting them to the most remote fires.
In the end you have to prioritize. 1) prevent the fire from spreading towards people 2) stop the fire from spreading towards valuable things 3) stop the fire from destroying more forest.
You’ll note saving the forest is last. Most forests actually evolved to cope with and even thrive off of wildfires. So a wildfire in an isolated part of a forest can be a good thing for the ecology. In fact, it’s the policy of fighting all fires aggressively that van put us in a predicament. Without an occasional fire to burn away small brush and deadfall the potential for massive forest consuming blazes grows. Therefore the best way to prevent forest fires is to light a forest fire and control its spread.
Latest Answers