Wildfires
California Population Grows to 39,810,000 in 2017
California added 309,000 residents last year, an 8 percent drop compared to annual increases since 2010. The state added a net 85,000 housing units, accounting for losses to wildfires.
Lessons Two and Three From the California Fires
The second and third parts in resiliency expert Dave Hampton's 3-part series on what the California fires teach us about preparing for climate change.
Debating the Future of Development in California's Fire Prone Areas
With the state of California in the grips of its most destructive year of wildfires ever, policy makers are pondering questions about whether it is appropriate to rebuild in places at high risk of burning again.
Complying With New State Laws on ADUs No Easy Matter
Santa Rosa is struggling to complying with two laws passed last year to encourage construction of inlaw units to increase affordable housing. Council members are concerned that loosened restrictions would degrade neighborhood character.
Wildfires Prompt Forestry Debate on Climate Change
While forests sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide, wildfires release enormous amounts of greenhouse gases as they increase in frequency and intensity from climate change.
Three Congressional Bills Respond to Western Wildfires
Two GOP bills and one bipartisan Senate bill hope to reduce the wildfire risk in the West. The "Wildfires Management Act of 2017" is sponsored by the two Republican senators of Idaho and three of the four Democratic senators of Washington and Oregon.
The High Cost of Burying Power Lines
With speculation that downed power lines and exploding transformers may have caused California's most deadly and destructive wildfires, many question why utility companies don't bury these lines through fire-prone areas.
Wine Country Wildfires Put Spotlight on Transmission Lines
No cause has yet been attributed to California's deadliest wildfires, but the connections to fallen power lines and exploding transformers, maintained by PG&E, have been exposed in a series of reports by the Bay Area News Group.
New Commuter Train Comes Through for Fire-Ravaged Santa Rosa
Sonoma-Marin Rail Transit (SMART) has been operating almost continuously at full schedule, collecting no fares since the epic wildfires began in Sonoma County on Oct. 8. Two stations in the fire-zone are shut down due to lack of access.
Wine Country Wildfires Put Focus on Wildland-Urban Interface
The fires in Northern California have caused at least 21 deaths, with over 500 people missing in Sonoma County. Wired science editor, Adam Rogers, looks at the problems posed when urban development encroaches wildlands.
Severe Fires After a Wet Winter? Experts Cite Climate Change
In the Western states, an especially hot summer stoked the yearly blazes, to many experts' surprise. For some, bigger wildfires are a "canary in the coal mine" for climate change.
Columbia River Gorge Resilient After the 30,000-acre Eagle Creek Fire
Good fire news from Oregon offers some relief from several weeks of scary environmental news from around the country.
What Goes Together? Sprawl and Destructive Wildfires
Wildfires tend to start at the Wildland-Urban Interface: those border zones between cities and the open land surrounding them. Keeping the lid on sprawl, it can be argued, would tame the inferno.
Climate Change Redefining Wildfires on the Great Plains
Wildfires, exacerbated by climate change, are ravaging the Great Plains with new intensity, according to a new study.
Coming to Grips With the Future of Wildfires
As wildfires become bigger, more frequent, and more expensive to fight, new methods for preventing the worst impacts of fire will be necessary, according to a new study.
Wildfires Becoming More Common in Southern States
This year has seen a significant uptick in wildfires across much of the South, spurred by drought and heat waves. The region's pattern of development increases the potential danger.
Wildfires and Climate Change
Study links wildfires to climate change.
Study: Forest Fires Have Doubled in the Western United States
Wildfires ravaged the western United States again this year, reflecting the new normal of climate change.
Five Canadian Cities Already Facing Climate Change
The CBC produced an interactive feature about the dangers of climate change in Canada, focusing on five cities threatened by environmental factors like sea-level rise, flooding, and wildfires.
Thank Climate Change and Sprawl for Worsening Wildfires
Along with climate conditions, urban sprawl is intensifying wildfires and increasing the damage they do.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
City of Cambridge, Maryland
Newport County Development Council: Connect Greater Newport
