[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.00,0:00:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,♪ (music) ♪
Dialogue: 0,0:00:01.00,0:00:04.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was just a fireball,\Nand it traveled so fast.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:05.26,0:00:06.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I just saw flames
Dialogue: 0,0:00:06.41,0:00:08.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,all up on the hill behind my house.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:08.81,0:00:10.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was Armageddon, I'll tell you.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:10.46,0:00:12.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The fire coming in\Nand burning all around us.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:13.27,0:00:17.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}Alaska, Arizona, \NCalifornia, Montana, Oregon,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:17.75,0:00:22.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Australia, Brazil,\NCanada, Greece, Russia--{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:22.24,0:00:24.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}these are just some of the places\Nwhere in recent years{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.89,0:00:27.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}wildfires have raged out of control.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:27.61,0:00:29.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}NASA satellites detect{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:29.07,0:00:32.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}more than a million large fires\Nworldwide every year.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.05,0:00:36.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Doug) The Western United States,\Nfor example, has seen larger fires
Dialogue: 0,0:00:36.29,0:00:38.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in each of the last several years
Dialogue: 0,0:00:38.16,0:00:39.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and more intense burning,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:39.60,0:00:41.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and many times those fires spread faster,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:41.88,0:00:43.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,making them more difficult to put out
Dialogue: 0,0:00:43.72,0:00:46.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and more dangerous for the communities\Nwho live in that vicinity.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:47.29,0:00:50.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}In many cases, \Nthe blazes are set by human activity,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:50.46,0:00:53.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}but sometimes policy fuels the flames too.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:53.96,0:00:55.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Consider California.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:55.66,0:00:57.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}The state's forests are overgrown{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:00:57.49,0:01:01.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}in part because of past federal policies\Nof putting out wildfires{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:01.70,0:01:03.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}rather than letting them burn.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:03.43,0:01:08.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Some of these policies were enacted\Nin response to a devastating fire in 1910,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:08.07,0:01:11.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}in which millions of acres burned\Nand more than 80 people died.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:11.100,0:01:15.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Years passed, and suppression\Nbecame the go-to strategy{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:15.22,0:01:16.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}for dealing with fire.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:18.22,0:01:21.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(reporter) {\i1}It only takes a minute\Nto wipe out a century.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:21.19,0:01:23.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}Initiatives like Smokey Bear{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:23.06,0:01:26.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}urged Americans\Nto help prevent forest fires.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:26.36,0:01:28.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}(Smokey Bear) Only you\Ncan prevent forest fires.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:29.45,0:01:31.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}In 1974, Congress passed{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:31.33,0:01:33.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}the Federal Fire Prevention\Nand Control Act{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:33.94,0:01:36.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}in an effort to save lives,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:36.05,0:01:37.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}and that plan worked.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:37.44,0:01:39.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Around that time, according to the Act,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:39.31,0:01:43.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}fires of all types killed\Nmore than 12,000 people each year.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:43.65,0:01:45.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Today, according to\Nthe U.S. Fire Administration,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:45.68,0:01:47.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}the death toll is lower,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:47.39,0:01:48.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}but...{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.39,0:01:51.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Doug) Part of the reason\Nwe see increasing fuels
Dialogue: 0,0:01:51.08,0:01:53.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and increasing extreme fire behavior
Dialogue: 0,0:01:53.29,0:01:55.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that we have a legacy\Nof putting fires out
Dialogue: 0,0:01:55.84,0:01:57.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and allowing fuels to grow,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:57.82,0:02:01.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,permitting fires when they do start\Nto get out of control,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:01.61,0:02:03.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}Overgrown forests\Nhave an abundance{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:03.75,0:02:07.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}of small and medium trees,\Nknown as ladder fuels,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:07.26,0:02:09.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}which can make fires more dangerous.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:09.36,0:02:11.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Ladder fuels would allow a surface fire
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.64,0:02:13.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,burning often slowly along the ground
Dialogue: 0,0:02:13.81,0:02:15.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to transition into the canopy
Dialogue: 0,0:02:15.54,0:02:17.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where it can spread more rapidly.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:17.13,0:02:19.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And when those trees are burning,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:19.00,0:02:22.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the embers that are blown by the wind\Ncan ignite the neighboring trees
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.56,0:02:25.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that can also be spread further downwind.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:25.41,0:02:29.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}That's part of the story\Nof California's 2018 fire season.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:29.18,0:02:31.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}The deadly campfire\Nwas fed by dry weather,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:31.81,0:02:34.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}fast winds, and ladder fuels.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:34.51,0:02:36.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}According to recent research,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:36.08,0:02:40.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}20 million acres of forest land\Nor nearly 20% of California{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:40.11,0:02:42.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}would benefit from what's known\Nas fuel treatments.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:43.11,0:02:45.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Land managers can limit the fuels{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:45.12,0:02:47.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}that could create large, \Nfast-moving fires{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:47.42,0:02:48.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}in several ways,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:48.83,0:02:50.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}including getting out vegetation--{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:51.38,0:02:53.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}think logging or clearing brush--{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.80,0:02:57.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}prescribed burns\Nwhere small fires are set deliberately,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:02:57.79,0:03:01.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}or letting natural wildfires\Nin unpopulated areas{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.13,0:03:04.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}run their course under the watch\Nof local firefighters.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:04.46,0:03:08.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}But clearing out brush\Ncan be expensive and labor-intensive.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:08.30,0:03:10.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}First, many of these trees\Nare small in diameter,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:10.81,0:03:13.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}so they don't have\Ncommercial value as timber{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:13.02,0:03:15.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}and there's little financial incentive\Nto remove them,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:15.68,0:03:17.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}and federal policies\Nhave historically favored{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:17.82,0:03:20.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}putting out fires as soon as they start,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:20.10,0:03:21.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}to keep people safe.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:21.71,0:03:22.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Maintaining that balance
Dialogue: 0,0:03:22.93,0:03:25.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of different ecosystem types\Nand different fire frequencies
Dialogue: 0,0:03:25.94,0:03:28.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is more difficult when we move into areas
Dialogue: 0,0:03:28.09,0:03:31.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with more dense human populations.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.16,0:03:33.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And so the wild land urban interface
Dialogue: 0,0:03:33.31,0:03:36.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is really where these two challenges meet,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:36.05,0:03:38.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where people are living in communities
Dialogue: 0,0:03:38.54,0:03:42.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,against landscapes\Nthat historically have had fire activity.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.16,0:03:44.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Those are landscapes\Nthat are very difficult to protect
Dialogue: 0,0:03:44.92,0:03:46.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when fires do start.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:46.78,0:03:49.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}One of the factors\Naffecting California's wildfire season{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:49.99,0:03:53.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}is new housing construction\Nin fire prone areas.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.68,0:03:55.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Climate change is adding\Nto the problem too.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:03:56.18,0:03:58.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Doug) Where fuels are abundant today
Dialogue: 0,0:03:59.31,0:04:02.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and where climate change is leading\Nto warmer and drier conditions,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:02.66,0:04:05.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we are already seeing\Nmore extreme fire behavior.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:05.91,0:04:07.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}According \Nto recent federal data,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:07.96,0:04:10.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}the last decade was the warmest on record.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:10.63,0:04:12.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}During the summer of 2020,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:12.38,0:04:13.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}fires burned in the Arctic,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:13.99,0:04:16.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}as parts of Siberia broke the record{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:16.46,0:04:20.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}for the highest temperature ever recorded\Nabove the Arctic Circle.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.58,0:04:23.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They're almost always too cold\Nand too wet to burn.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:23.89,0:04:25.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So, as those landscapes,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:25.81,0:04:28.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which are warming three times faster\Nthan the rest of the planet,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:28.86,0:04:30.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,continue to warm and dry,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:30.81,0:04:32.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we certainly expect to see more fires
Dialogue: 0,0:04:32.76,0:04:34.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in those remote landscapes
Dialogue: 0,0:04:34.11,0:04:36.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,directly in response to climate change.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:37.09,0:04:41.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}In August of 2020, wildfires,\Nmost of them sparked by lightning,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:41.23,0:04:43.91,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}raged out of control across California.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:43.91,0:04:47.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Earlier in the year, state officials\Nhad warned of high fire danger{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:47.15,0:04:50.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}caused by a dry winter and warm spring.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:50.37,0:04:53.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}It's a pattern scientists\Ngenerally attribute to climate change.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:54.02,0:04:57.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}In May, the mountain snowpack\Nin California, Sierra Nevada{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:57.24,0:04:59.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}was just 13% of normal.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:04:59.37,0:05:01.09,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}And it's not just 2020.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:01.09,0:05:04.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Half of California's\N20 most destructive wildfires{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:04.30,0:05:06.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}have happened since 2015.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:08.82,0:05:11.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Across the forests of Southeast Australia,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:11.01,0:05:14.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}NASA mapped more fires\Nbetween 2019 and 2020{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:14.99,0:05:17.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}than they had in the last 16 years.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:17.96,0:05:21.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}The fires were fueled\Nby extreme heat and drought.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:21.25,0:05:22.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}Hotter, drier weather{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:22.66,0:05:25.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}sucks moisture out of the trees,\Ngrasses, and other fuels,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:25.90,0:05:27.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}making them more flammable.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:27.54,0:05:30.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}And this is making fire management\Nall the more complicated.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:30.78,0:05:33.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So as conditions that allow\Nwildfires to spread
Dialogue: 0,0:05:33.88,0:05:37.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are lasting longer across\Nthe United States and elsewhere,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:37.71,0:05:39.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there's a shorter and shorter window
Dialogue: 0,0:05:39.51,0:05:42.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where active management\Ncould happen under conditions
Dialogue: 0,0:05:42.28,0:05:45.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that wouldn't risk fires\Nescaping and spreading
Dialogue: 0,0:05:45.20,0:05:47.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into lands as a wildfire.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:47.68,0:05:50.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(narrator) {\i1}That means\Nfighting fire with fire{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:50.02,0:05:52.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}might not be an option\Nfor certain regions anymore.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:52.97,0:05:54.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}So to help with wildfires,{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:54.71,0:05:56.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}researchers are working on algorithms{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:56.77,0:05:58.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,{\i1}to improve forecasting.{\i0}
Dialogue: 0,0:05:58.64,0:06:01.11,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Doug) If we can anticipate the timescales
Dialogue: 0,0:06:01.11,0:06:03.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the locations\Nwhere fires are most likely,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:03.30,0:06:07.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we have the best chance of trying\Nto mobilize and prepare resources
Dialogue: 0,0:06:07.48,0:06:10.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to anticipate fires\Nand make a more timely decision
Dialogue: 0,0:06:10.58,0:06:13.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about which fires to put out\Nand which to let burn.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:17.70,0:06:20.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,♪ (music) ♪