Playing with Fire

The document argues that climate change is creating hotter, drier conditions in the American West, leading to more frequent and severe wildfires. This risk is compounded by increased residential and commercial development in fire-prone areas and federal policies that prioritize immediate fire suppression over proactive forest management. The report details the escalating economic costs of suppression and the broader impacts on infrastructure, public health, and water supplies, while recommending zoning reforms, fireproofing, and carbon emission reductions to build resilience.

• Climate change is driving an increase in the frequency, size, and duration of wildfires in the American West. The number of large wildfires on federally managed lands in 11 western states rose from approximately 140 in 1980–1989 to 250 in 2000–2009, and the average fire season has expanded from five months in the 1970s to seven months today.
• Residential development in high-risk areas is significantly increasing human exposure and economic vulnerability. Across 13 western states, more than 1.2 million homes with an estimated value exceeding $189 billion are at high or very high risk, with California, Colorado, and Texas containing nearly 80 percent of these properties.
• The financial costs of wildfires are soaring, with direct suppression costs exceeding $1 billion annually since 2000. Total wildfire costs are estimated to be 2 to 30 times higher than direct suppression costs alone.
• Federal forest management is overly focused on suppression rather than prevention, which drains budgets for long-term forest health. The share of the U.S. Forest Service budget dedicated to fire management increased from 13 percent in 1991 to over 40 percent in 2012.
• Wildfires cause extensive secondary damages beyond immediate fire suppression, including infrastructure destruction, public health crises from smoke, and watershed degradation. Examples include $86 million in infrastructure damage from the 2003 San Diego wildfires and $2.2 million in hospital costs in the Reno/Sparks area of Nevada during the 2008 fire season.
• To mitigate future risks, the report recommends a combination of mandatory building codes, zoning laws to limit development in risky zones, the creation of a national climate resilience fund, and the reduction of carbon emissions to slow temperature increases.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2014). Playing with Fire. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/legacy/assets/documents/global_warming/playing-with-fire-summary.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Playing with Fire. 2014. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/legacy/assets/documents/global_warming/playing-with-fire-summary.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Playing with Fire |date=July 2014 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/legacy/assets/documents/global_warming/playing-with-fire-summary.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2014playing, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Playing with Fire}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2014}, month = jul, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/legacy/assets/documents/global_warming/playing-with-fire-summary.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }