09/06/2013

Wildfires Consume Funds Flagged for Prevention

20:19 minutes

This year, the U.S. Forest Service has spent hundreds of millions of dollars fighting wildfires, cutting into funds originally set aside to prevent them. Fire historian Steve Pyne compares the way we manage fires today to how we manage health—focused on emergencies, and not prevention.

Segment Guests

Chris Topik

Chris Topik is former staffer at the House Appropriations Committee and director of “Restoring America’s Forests” at the Nature Conservancy in Arlington, Virginia.

Steve Pyne

Steve Pyne is a fire historian at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.

Meet the Producer

About Christopher Intagliata

Christopher Intagliata was Science Friday’s senior producer. He once served as a prop in an optical illusion and speaks passable Ira Flatowese.