In many parts of the West, fire suppression has caused a proliferation of smaller trees and other kindling that can allow wildfires to burn very intensely and reach into the canopy. The government has been treating an increasing number of acres with prescribed burns and mechanical thinning projects compared to a decade or two ago, but the scope of the problem is enormous. This dashboard breaks down the fuels work by agency, type of treatment, and whether it was located in the wildland-urban interface, where homes and businesses are at greatest risk. Also included is spending data from the Forest Service, which devotes much of its yearly budget to wildfires.

Learn more about the issue in this post and by checking out our wildfire page and PowerPoint deck.

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