Wildfire in Washington State

Washington’s status as the Evergreen State is at risk. Large portions of our majestic forests are overcrowded, diseased, and at risk from wildfires. Local, state, and federal efforts to improve forest health are yielding progress, but the hotter and drier conditions expected in many places as the planet warms will increase stresses on our forestlands. The long-term future of our state’s greatest natural asset cannot be taken for granted.

After an unprecedented string of wildfires in recent years, which burned millions of acres in our state and shrouded many Washington communities in smoke for days at a time, the Washington State Academy of Sciences decided to devote its 12th Annual Symposium to the topic of wildfires in Washington State. On September 12, 2019, many of the Academy’s 300 members, along with a wide range of policy makers, foresters, firefighters, and other experts, gathered at the Museum of Flight in Seattle to explore such topics as wildfires across space and time, the effects of smoke on health, and the intersection between wildfire research and policy. It was an eye-opening, sometimes alarming, and yet optimistic and encouraging meeting.

The complexity and scope of the issues posed by wildfires in Washington State are daunting. Preparing for, responding to, and recovering from wildfires involve topics ranging from land use to emergency preparedness to climate change to health care. One of the greatest needs is for the creation of a coordinating entity that can connect these issues and provide policy guidance, particularly as climatic and forest conditions continue to change. The Washington State Academy of Sciences intends to continue monitoring this issue and providing advice and guidance wherever needed.

As chair of the Symposium, I want to thank the distinguished presenters (biographies in Appendix B) who shared with us their expertise and insights. I also want to thank Donna Gerardi Riordan, the executive director of the Academy; program operations manager Devon Emily Thorsell, who helped organize and run the meeting; and Steve Olson, who wrote the following summary of the meeting. Providing expert scientific and engineering assessments to inform state policy making is the principal goal of the Washington State Academy of Sciences. Few topics are as important to our state as the future of our forests.