According to a new study, individuals with a high degree of social vulnerability are at a greater risk of being exposed to wildfires in Oregon and Washington as the wildfire risk increases.
Social vulnerability refers to characteristics such as age, race or ethnicity, or socioeconomic status that make a person or community more susceptible to harm from hazards.
Between 2011 and 2021, the number of people with high social vulnerability who were exposed to wildfires in Oregon, Washington, and California more than tripled compared to the previous decade. This highlights the importance of including the needs of at-risk populations in wildfire preparation and response planning, as stated by Erica Fleishman, a professor at Oregon State University and co-author of the study.
“It has been widely known that the number of destructive wildfires and the population affected by them are increasing, and that hazards have unequal effects on people,” said Fleishman, who is affiliated with OSU’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences and also directs the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute. “This research helps us understand the extent of the risks people are facing, as well as where and why.
“The risks are clearly higher for those who will have more difficulty recovering.”
2023-09-20 21:24:03
Post from phys.org