Changing The Climate
By Richard Bednarski
Each conversational episode will feature one or two sources that specialize in a given topic.
Season one is all about fire. We explore the newly termed mega-fires by looking into the ecological modifications, the policies, fire activity and fire severity. What do these fires mean for the future?
Changing The ClimateDec 01, 2021
Learning from Fire to Open up the Nuance
Join us as we talk with Amanda Monthai of the Life with Fire podcast about what she has learned in her over 23 episodes of covering wildfire. As a former hot shot, she has the experience of working on a fire line. Her in depth reporting reveals some of the underlying issues of reporting on wildfire and what the most important factors are about wildfires. It is not the amount of acres burned; listen to find learn more.
Costs of Limited Action, an in-depth look into a Call to Action by scientists
As a warming climate and mismanaged forests have created perfect conditions for mega-fires, a group of scientists have teamed up across western North America to address the massive time bomb we have on our hands and drafted an official white paper, which you can read here. I wanted to learn more about this paper, the research, and what fire is like up north in Canada so I spoke with one of the dozens of authors Robert Gray, a wildland fire ecologist and fire scientist living and working in British Columbia. He has been around fire for about forty years, working on a fire line and operating controlled burns. He has worked with many agencies across Canada and the United states. This episode explores the impact of removing fires and what the future looks like.
Fire Ecology
In early October I traveled to my hometown, Quincy, California to learn more about how the dixie fire was different from other fires. I wanted to go beyond the sheer size of the fire and learn more about the ecology and what the future holds for the area I grew up in.
I spoke with Plumas National Forest Fire Ecologist, Kyle Merriam at length about fire ecology and some of her research. She found that high severity fires have a greater chance at burning again, at high severity within six to ten years.
Good Fire
Welcome to episode one of Changing the Climate, This episode is all about Good Fire. Thank you for joining me, your host, Richard Bednarski.
In this episode, I speak with Craig Tucker, a natural resources consultant for the Karuk tribe in Northern California. He has worked alongside them for over 20 years, mostly focusing on restoring the health of the Klamath River and its watershed.
However, as the fire crisis has become more severe, the Karuk asked him to switch gears and help with the policy work around fire.
In our conversation, he talked about the idea of Good Fire, also known as prescribed fire, or cultural burning. Notably what hurdles prevent the reintroduction of fire, what various aspects of bureaucratic red tape there are, and how the fire crisis has become a social justice issue.
Welcome to Changing the Climate
Welcome to Changing the Climate, the podcast that explores everyday issues through the lens of climate change. I am your host, Richard Bednarski, and I invite you to join me as I dive into the issues and seek solutions while examining the science behind climate change.
Season one is all about fire. We explore the newly termed mega-fires by looking into the ecological modifications, the policies, fire activity and fire severity.
What do these fires mean for the future?