Controlled burns reduce wildfire risk, but they require trained staff and funding − this could be a rough year

Prescribed burns like this one are intentional, controlled fires used to clear out dry grass and underbrush that could fuel more destructive wildfires. Ethan Swope/Getty Images

Red skies in August, longer fire seasons and checking air quality before taking my toddler to the park. This has become the new norm in the western United States as wildfires become more frequent, larger and more catastrophic.

As an ecologist at the University of Colorado Boulder, I know that fires are part of the natural processes that forests need to stay healthy. But the combined effects of a warmer and drier climate, more people living in fire-prone areas and vegetation and debris built up over years of fire suppression are leading to more severe fires that spread faster. And that’s putting humans, ecosystems and economies at risk.