Navigating the Wildfire–Pandemic Interface: Public Perceptions of COVID-19 and the 2020 Wildfire Season in Arizona

COVID-19 has complicated wildfire management and public safety for the 2020 fire season. It is unclear whether COVID-19 has impacted the ability of residents in the wildland–urban interface to prepare for and evacuate from wildfire, or the extent to which residents feel their household’s safety has been affected. Several areas with high wildfire risk are also experiencing record numbers of COVID-19 cases, including the state of Arizona in the southwestern United States. We conducted a mixed-mode survey of households in close proximity to two recent wildfires in rural Arizona to better understand whether residents living in the wildland–urban interface perceive COVID-19 as a factor in wildfire safety. Preliminary data suggest that the current challenges around collective action to address wildfire risk may be further exacerbated due to COVID-19, and that the current pandemic has potentially widened existing disparities in household capacity to conduct wildfire risk mitigation activities in the wildland–urban interface. Proactive planning for wildfire has also increased perceived ability to practice safe distancing from others during evacuation, highlighting the benefits that household planning for wildfire can have on other concurrent hazards. Parallels in both the wildfire and pandemic literature highlight vast opportunities for future research that can expand upon and advance our findings.

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Complexity of homeowner wildfire risk mitigation: an integration of hazard theories

International Journal of Wildland Fire ◽

10.1071/wf10096 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 20 (8) ◽

pp. 921 ◽

Cited By ~ 62

Author(s):

Bonita L. McFarlane ◽

Tara K. McGee ◽

Hilary Faulkner

Keyword(s):

Perceived Risk ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Risk Mitigation ◽

Mail Survey ◽

Threat Assessment ◽

Equation Model ◽

Perceived Effectiveness ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Wildfire Management ◽

Wildfire Risk

Each year wildfire affects communities in Canada, resulting in evacuations and, in some cases, loss of homes. Several Canadian wildfire management agencies have initiated mitigation programs aimed at reducing wildfire risk. Successful wildfire mitigation involves both community-level and homeowner action. This paper examines factors that influence wildfire mitigation by homeowners. We draw upon the general hazards and wildfire management literature to develop and test a theoretical model for homeowner wildfire mitigation that includes perceived risk, an evaluation of threat significance and the influence of perceived costs and benefits of mitigation. We used a mail survey to collect data from 1265 residents in six interface communities in the province of Alberta. Results showed a high level of completion for most mitigation activities. A structural equation model provided support for the hypothesis that the evaluation of threat involves weighing the negative effects of mitigation on homeowners’ feelings of connectedness to nature and the cost of mitigation with the positive influences of fear, a sense of responsibility and perceived effectiveness of mitigation. Considering the total effects, threat assessment had the greatest effect on mitigation by homeowners, followed by perceived effectiveness of mitigation in reducing damage and not having financial resources for mitigation.

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Transcending Parallel Play: Boundary Spanning for Collective Action in Wildfire Management

Fire ◽

10.3390/fire4030041 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (3) ◽

pp. 41

Author(s):

Emily Jane Davis ◽

Heidi Huber-Stearns ◽

Antony S. Cheng ◽

Meredith Jacobson

Keyword(s):

Collective Action ◽

Research Policy ◽

The United States ◽

Boundary Spanning ◽

Future Research ◽

Wildfire Management ◽

Wildfire Risk ◽

Ability To Act ◽

New Thinking ◽

Parallel Play

A key challenge in the United States is how to manage wildfire risk across boundaries and scales, as roles, responsibilities, and ability to act are distributed among actors in ways that do not always incentivize collective action. In this review paper, we provide several conceptual contributions to the understanding of wildfire management through the application of boundary spanning frameworks. This includes: (1) a characterization of four major types of boundaries in managing wildfire risk; (2) a review of major boundary spanning features and frameworks that integrate them; and (3) consideration of current and potential applications of the boundary spanning construct to the domain of wildfire management. Our goal is to advance knowledge of how actors in this arena may overcome “parallel play” to more collectively address wildfire risk. We generate new thinking about wildfire management, and offer potential implications and questions for future research, policy, and management.

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Homeowner Preferences for Wildfire Risk Mitigation in the Alaskan Wildland Urban Interface

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su132111754 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (21) ◽

pp. 11754

Author(s):

Allen Molina ◽

Joseph Little ◽

Stacy Drury ◽

Randi Jandt

Keyword(s):

Willingness To Pay ◽

Risk Mitigation ◽

Human Life ◽

Public Lands ◽

Discrete Choice Experiments ◽

Individual Risk ◽

Fuel Treatments ◽

Wildland Urban Interface ◽

Wildfire Risk ◽

Amenity Values

Wildfire has become a larger threat to human life and property with the proliferation of homes into the wildland urban interface and warming climate. In this study we explored Alaskan homeowner preferences for wildfire risk mitigation in the wildland urban interface using discrete choice experiments to better understand the drivers of their risk mitigation actions. Estimates of willingness-to-pay for private mitigation actions are increased with wildfire risk reduction for all respondents. Willingness-to-pay for private mitigation is also positively associated with the presence of thinned fuel treatments on nearby public lands, but is estimated to decrease if cleared fuel treatments are present on public lands. Our study concludes that homeowners minimize wildfire risk while maintaining neighborhood amenity values. Additionally, findings suggest that there is an optimal amount of neighborhood participation to motivate individual risk mitigation actions, as well as having a say in the mitigation actions on public lands.

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Addressing the Private Wildfire Risk Mitigation Paradox in a Climate-Altered Wildland Urban Interface

The WSPC Reference on Natural Resources and Environmental Policy in the Era of Global Change ◽

10.1142/9789813208186_0004 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 71-94 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Keyword(s):

Risk Mitigation ◽

Wildland Urban Interface ◽

Wildfire Risk

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Wildfire risk mitigation and recreational property owners in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park-Alberta

The Forestry Chronicle ◽

10.5558/tfc2016-019 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 92 (01) ◽

pp. 66-76 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Louis J. Price ◽

Bonita McFarlane ◽

Van Lantz

Keyword(s):

Perceived Risk ◽

Risk Mitigation ◽

Mail Survey ◽

Wildfire Management ◽

Wildfire Risk ◽

Action Awareness ◽

Property Owners ◽

Survey Results ◽

Mitigation Action ◽

High Level

Recreational property (cottage) owners represent a growing segment of population living at the wildland–urban interface. Land managers may find it particularly difficult to engage these landowners in wildfire management initiatives. This paper examines support for wildfire management, perceived wildfire risk and wildfire mitigation actions among cottage owners in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park-Alberta. Data were collected from 165 cottage owners using a mail survey. Results showed that these owners had a high level of support for fuel reductions on the landscape and a high level of interest in participating in a cooperative wildfire mitigation program; they had taken action to reduce their risk. However, they seemed reluctant to do substantial tree pruning, or to install fire-resistant siding or screen eaves, decks and vents. Results found that perceived risk was not correlated with mitigation action. Awareness, perceived effectiveness of firefighters, days spent at the cottage and value of the cottage were correlated positively with mitigation action, whereas perceived efficacy, aesthetic effects and cost of mitigation were correlated negatively. These findings suggest that mitigation programs for cottage owners may be effective by providing public education on the efficacy of mitigation, lessening the effects of impediments such as cost, and alleviating concerns about aesthetics.

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Application of the Socio-Ecological System Framework to Forest Fire Risk Management: A Systematic Literature Review

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13042121 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 2121 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ingrid Vigna ◽

Angelo Besana ◽

Elena Comino ◽

Alessandro Pezzoli

Keyword(s):

Risk Management ◽

Community Involvement ◽

Forest Ecosystems ◽

Local Community ◽

Fire Risk ◽

Future Research ◽

Specific Reference ◽

Clear Understanding ◽

Wildfire Risk ◽

Starting Point

Although increasing concern about climate change has raised awareness of the fundamental role of forest ecosystems, forests are threatened by human-induced impacts worldwide. Among them, wildfire risk is clearly the result of the interaction between human activities, ecological domains, and climate. However, a clear understanding of these interactions is still needed both at the global and local levels. Numerous studies have proven the validity of the socioecological system (SES) approach in addressing this kind of interdisciplinary issue. Therefore, a systematic review of the existing literature on the application of SES frameworks to forest ecosystems is carried out, with a specific focus on wildfire risk management. The results demonstrate the existence of different methodological approaches that can be grouped into seven main categories, which range from qualitative analysis to quantitative spatially explicit investigations. The strengths and limitations of the approaches are discussed, with a specific reference to the geographical setting of the works. The research suggests the importance of local community involvement and local knowledge consideration in wildfire risk management. This review provides a starting point for future research on forest SES and a supporting tool for the development of a sustainable wildfire risk adaptation and mitigation strategy.

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IoT Cloud Security Review

ACM Computing Surveys ◽

10.1145/3447625 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 54 (4) ◽

pp. 1-36

Author(s):

Fei Chen ◽

Duming Luo ◽

Tao Xiang ◽

Ping Chen ◽

Junfeng Fan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Case Studies ◽

Service Providers ◽

Risk Mitigation ◽

Rapid Development ◽

Security Analysis ◽

Cloud Security ◽

Future Research ◽

Security Risk ◽

Research Attention ◽

Cloud Systems

Recent years have seen the rapid development and integration of the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing. The market is providing various consumer-oriented smart IoT devices; the mainstream cloud service providers are building their software stacks to support IoT services. With this emerging trend even growing, the security of such smart IoT cloud systems has drawn much research attention in recent years. To better understand the emerging consumer-oriented smart IoT cloud systems for practical engineers and new researchers, this article presents a review of the most recent research efforts on existing, real, already deployed consumer-oriented IoT cloud applications in the past five years using typical case studies. Specifically, we first present a general model for the IoT cloud ecosystem. Then, using the model, we review and summarize recent, representative research works on emerging smart IoT cloud system security using 10 detailed case studies, with the aim that the case studies together provide insights into the insecurity of current emerging IoT cloud systems. We further present a systematic approach to conduct a security analysis for IoT cloud systems. Based on the proposed security analysis approach, we review and suggest potential security risk mitigation methods to protect IoT cloud systems. We also discuss future research challenges for the IoT cloud security area.

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The use of questionnaires for acquiring information on public perception of natural hazards and risk mitigation – a review of current knowledge and practice

Natural Hazards and Earth System Science ◽

10.5194/nhess-9-1307-2009 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 9 (4) ◽

pp. 1307-1325 ◽

Cited By ~ 115

Author(s):

D. K. Bird

Keyword(s):

Natural Hazards ◽

Public Perception ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Risk Mitigation ◽

Mode Of Delivery ◽

Sampling Technique ◽

Future Research ◽

Delivery Mode ◽

Management Procedures ◽

Knowledge And Practice

Abstract. Questionnaires are popular and fundamental tools for acquiring information on public knowledge and perception of natural hazards. Questionnaires can provide valuable information to emergency management agencies for developing risk management procedures. Although many natural hazards researchers describe results generated from questionnaires, few explain the techniques used for their development and implementation. Methodological detail should include, as a minimum, response format (open/closed questions), mode of delivery, sampling technique, response rate and access to the questionnaire to allow reproduction of or comparison with similar studies. This article reviews current knowledge and practice for developing and implementing questionnaires. Key features include questionnaire design, delivery mode, sampling techniques and data analysis. In order to illustrate these aspects, a case study examines methods chosen for the development and implementation of questionnaires used to obtain information on knowledge and perception of volcanic hazards in a tourist region in southern Iceland. Face-to-face interviews highlighted certain issues with respect to question structure and sequence. Recommendations are made to overcome these problems before the questionnaires are applied in future research projects. In conclusion, basic steps that should be disclosed in the literature are provided as a checklist to ensure that reliable, replicable and valid results are produced from questionnaire based hazard knowledge and risk perception research.

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