New research suggests that the risk of severe wildfires in forests managed by private timber companies is significantly higher than in those overseen by public land agencies.
This study found that the wildfire risk was nearly 1.5 times greater in the Sierra Nevada region of northern California.
The author pointed out that forests under timber companies tend to have better conditions for igniting megafires.
Jacob Levine, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Utah, explained this with an analogy: “It’s like stacking many games on a grid, which creates a better ignition scenario compared to dispersing them into smaller pieces.”
Levine and his team used a unique dataset from a collaborative federal initiative that employed airborne light detection and ranging (LIDAR) technology.
In 2018, agencies like the U.S. Forest Service and NASA started looking into private lands around California’s Plumas National Forest.
This LIDAR technology shoots out billions of laser pulses, measuring the time it takes for that light to bounce back after hitting different forest structures. These measurements help create detailed assessments of distance, elevation, and other important factors.
According to the author, Plumas National Forest reflects a broader trend in wildfire frequency and intensity, marked by a mixture of private and public land ownership.
Researchers noted that the mixed conifer trees in the region are suited to occasional low- to moderate-intensity fires that burn vegetation while leaving some trees intact. However, since the 1800s, practices aimed at increasing U.S. wood production and managing fires have interrupted the natural fire cycle, increasing fuel loads for future fires.
From 2019 to 2021, around 70% of the surveyed areas experienced fires, including the notable 2021 Dixie Fire.
Interestingly, the LIDAR data was gathered just before these wildfires occurred, which Levine described as “accidental.”
“We have very detailed images of the forest just before these large fires started,” Levine mentioned.
Analyzing five fires that collectively burned about 1.1 million acres of the Plumas National Forest, the researchers found that although the fires ignited on public lands, their impact was notably worse on private lands.
In the survey, 81.6% of the area was managed by public agencies, with only 11.7% owned by private timber companies and 6.6% by non-industrial private owners.
The authors determined that private industrial landownership correlated with a 1.45-fold increase in the likelihood of severe fires compared to public lands, and a 2.1-fold increase in risk for non-industrial private lands.
Moreover, elevated risks were noted for areas not held by private entities, including wilderness regions and lands belonging to small owners, which also pose threats to nearby urban communities.
“Large fires can easily penetrate a dense forest canopy,” Levine stated, explaining that fires can move rapidly through the trees, exacerbating the destruction.
In contrast to timber company-controlled forests, public lands typically serve a variety of purposes—grazing, recreation, restoration, and wildlife habitat, which may complicate their management. These lands are often involved in environmental lawsuits aimed at stopping tree removal as well.
The research team hopes their findings will influence policy decisions regarding landscape management, suggesting that this understanding can help create better strategies for handling future wildfires.
Access to forest data from before and after the fires has allowed researchers to discern the types of forest structures linked to high-severity fires.
This insight enables stakeholders to “target mitigation strategies to preempt this massive fire problem while still producing enough wood to satisfy market demands.”
