The price of fighting forest fires has been increasing substantially, costing taxpayers billions every year. Unfortunately, the combination of continued growth in the wildland urban interface and increasing temperatures mean that fire suppression costs will more than double in the next 15 years. Read more about the cost of protecting homes from forest fires in our latest newsletter or click here to review our wildfire research directly.

Highlights

• A case study in Montana on the cost of protecting homes and the impact of rising temperatures. (See page one of the newsletter.)
• Eight steps to help control wildfire costs. (See page two.)
• How the current approach to fire suppression has perverse incentives and lacks accountability. (See page two.)

Also at Headwaters Economics

• See how western counties are performing in the current recession (page four) along with an economic opportunities tool, Three Wests, for counties based on access to markets
• Click here for our latest report: Oil Shale: 14 Unanswered Questions
• Click here for the latest Economic Profile System tools on specific economic sectors