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Jessica Navarro
3/25/2022

Wildfires

Forest areas are essential for life on the planet. In addition to being important for the

cycles of production and distribution of water, they also purify the air we breathe. Furthermore,

they regulate temperature and humidity, which balances weather; they provide food, medicine,

and shelter for living things; and are a source in many human activities.

These vital processes are threatened by several factors such as: soil degradation,

deforestation, and/or uncontrolled fires that are related to other activities. Fire can have a

positive influence on nature, as it helps maintain biodiversity. However, when fire is used

irresponsibly or caused by negligence, can turn into a wildfire with devastating consequences

for the environment, including human health and safety.

Wildfires affect millions of people around the world. According to the National

Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) (2022), so far, in 2022 there have been 13,996 fires, resulting in

466,807 acres affected. The loss of natural resources, property, and life as a result of wildfires is

also a major concern but, who is responsible for the costs caused by these fires? the affected

communities? the government? This research aims to answer these questions.

Impact of Wildfires

The consequences of forest fires are expensive, as they cause damage to property,

infrastructure, and the local economy. For example, spending on wildfires in the state of

California has reached 150% in the last decade, resulting in more than a billion dollars a year
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(Boxall & Cart, 2008). Additionally, wildfires deteriorate air quality which consequently affects

human health. Smoke from fires can cause irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract, or more

serious conditions, such as reduced lung function, bronchitis, worsening asthma, heart failure,

and premature death (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2022). According to

Cleetus & Mulik, “the 2008 fire season led to almost $2.2 million in hospital costs in the

Reno/Sparks area of Nevada caused by wildfires within a 350-mile radius” (p. 2).

Wildfires not only cause damage in the moment they happen, but also have

consequences for the future. The California Water Science Center (2018) reports that “More

than 12 million acres of land, including important forested water-supply watersheds, have

burned in the southwestern U.S. in the past 30 years” (paras. 1). Wildfires increase

susceptibility of watersheds to flooding and erosion and can have both short- and long-term

impacts on water supplies, such as increased treatment costs, need for alternative supplies, and

diminished reservoir capacity (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2019).

Wildfire Costs

The Department of the Interior’s Wildland Fire Management (WFM) program is

composed of the Office of Wildland Fire (OWF) and four bureaus with wildland fire

management responsibilities – the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the Bureau of Land

Management (BLM), the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and the National Park Service (NPS)

(Office of Wildland Fire, 2021).

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Every year the Wildland Fire Management budget is established by The U.S. Department

of the Interior to promote efficiency in the program activities described as follows:

 Preparedness: includes hiring people, training them, tracking their qualifications,

planning our response ahead of time, as well as putting crews and equipment in the

places most likely to experience fire.

 Suppression operations: people and equipment needed to control wildfires.

 Fuel management: supports the strategic removal of grasses, shrubs, and trees to

restore and maintain ecosystems and limit the negative impacts of wildfires

 Burned Area Rehabilitation (BAR): efforts to repair or improve burned landscapes

unlikely to recover without human assistance.

 Facilities, construction, and maintenance: network of air tanker bases, crew quarters,

emergency dispatch centers, and other buildings that provide homes for firefighters,

support staff, and their equipment.

 Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP): scientific studies associated with wildland fire, fuels,

and fire-impacted ecosystems that respond to the emerging needs of land managers,

practitioners, and policymakers.

The Office of Wildland Fire is in charge of distributing the funds between the different

activities of the WFM program. For this reason, the correct distribution of these funds should

cover the expenses caused by forest fires but sometimes they are not enough to pay for all the

damage caused. The average home insurance policy covers the structure of the house, as well
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as personal belongings, and additional living expenses. However, living in a high-risk area for

wildfires, such as California, coverage could be denied. This is why residents in these areas

should check their insurance policies to ensure high coverage in the event of a wildfire to avoid

paying out of pocket (Borelli, 2021).

Wildfires Over the Years

The National Interagency Fire Center offers data on annual suppression costs for U.S.

wildfires. Table 1 shows the number of fires occurred in the last 7 years, as well as the acres

affected, and the funds provided by the Forest Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Table 1

Suppression Costs
Year Fires Acres Forest service DOI Agencies Total
2014 63,212  3,595,613  $1,195,955,000  $326,194,000  $1,522,149,000 
2015 68,151  10,125,149  $1,713,000,000  $417,543,000  $2,130,543,000 
2016 67,595  5,503,538  $1,603,806,000  $371,739,000  $1,975,545,000 
2017 71,499  10,026,086  $2,410,165,000  $508,000,000  $2,918,165,000 
2018 58,083  8,767,492  $2,615,256,000  $528,000,000  $3,143,256,000 
2019 50,477  4,664,364  $1,150,000,000  $440,000,000  $1,590,000,000 
2020 58,950  10,122,336  $1,764,000,000  $510,000,000  $2,274,000,000 
  7 years average  $1,778,883,143  $443,068,000   $2,221,951,143 
Note: Suppression Only. Source: Elaborated with Federal Firefighting costs data. National Interagency
Fire Center (NIFC) 2021.

The information above shows that 2020 was the most expensive year since 2018, when

the total costs topped $3.143 billion. This suggests that the cost of suppressing these fires is

going up over time (see Graphic 1).

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Graphic 1

7 Years Average Wildfire Costs

$3,500,000,000

$3,000,000,000

$2,500,000,000

$2,000,000,000

$1,500,000,000

$1,000,000,000

$500,000,000

$0
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Forest service DOI Agencies Total Series4

Note: Suppression Only. Source: Elaborated with Federal Firefighting costs data. National Interagency
Fire Center (NIFC) 2021.

Conclusion

Wildfires are a socioeconomic problem since every day there are fires to prevent,

prepare for, and suppress. The consequences of fires have been addressed throughout this

document. In addition to the fact that wildfires cause serious environmental damage, they also

damage the infrastructure of communities and human health. If they are not handled with

expertise, they cause significant economic losses due to the large investments that are

necessary to mitigate the effects of these fires.

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References

Borrelli, L. (2021). U.S. wildfire statistics. Bankrate. Retrieved March 26, 2022, from

https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/homeowners-insurance/wildfire-statistics/

Boxall, B. & Cart, J. (2008). As wildfires get wilder, the costs of fighting them are untamed. New

York Times. Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-

wildfires27-2008jul27-story.html

California Water Science Center. (2018). Water Quality after a Wildfire. California Water Science

Center. Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://ca.water.usgs.gov/wildfires/wildfires-

water-quality.html

Cleetus, R. & Mulik, K. (2014). Playing with Fire: How Climate Change and Development

Patterns Are Contributing to the Soaring Costs of Western Wildfires. Union of Concerned

Scientists. Retrieved March 25, 2022, from

https://www.ucsusa.org/sites/default/files/legacy/assets/documents/global_warming/

playing-with-fire-report.pdf

National Interagency Fire Center. (2022). National Fire News. National Interagency Fire Center.

Retrieved March 25, 2022, from https://www.nifc.gov/fire-information/nfn

National Interagency Fire Center. (2022). Suppression Costs. National Interagency Fire Center.

Retrieved March 25, 2022, from

https://www.nifc.gov/fire-information/statistics/suppression-costs
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Office of Wildland Fire. (2021). Wildland Fire Management: Budget Justifications and

Performance Information Fiscal Year 2021. U.S. Department of the Interior. Retrieved

March 26, 2022, from https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/uploads/fy2021-budget-

justification-btfa.pdf

United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2019). Wildfires: How Do They Affect Our

Water Supplies? United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved March 26,

2022, from https://www.epa.gov/sciencematters/wildfires-how-do-they-affect-our-

water-supplies