Policy Brief: Tracking Headwaters Management for Wildfire Resilience in California

Highlights

• California has been contending with increasingly frequent and severe wildfires for years, often in headwater regions where much of the state's water supply originates. These fires are affecting all Californians, costing the state billions of dollars, and threatening our vital water supply.
• The state is now engaged in an unprecedented multi-agency effort to reduce wildfire hazard on one million acres of wildlands each year. Better headwater management will both protect the state's water supply and help keep residents safe.
• A state-federal task force is over halfway to meeting the annual million-acre goal. In the first four years, the task force coordinated and tracked efforts to reduce wildfire hazard.
• The quality of wildfire hazard reduction treatments and the duration of their impacts vary widely. Focusing on higher-quality treatments with longer-lasting effects in fewer areas may yield greater benefits than carrying out one-off activities across a broader landscape.