SS 1.4 Stopping wildfires before they spark

Alistair Smith (go.uidaho.edu/4mbiISI) is a professor and department chair in University of Idaho’s Department of Earth and Spatial Sciences (go.uidaho.edu/419qiFi). He’s working with power companies across the globe to identify which types of vegetation are most likely to ignite — and what can be done to stop wildfires before they start. At U of I’s combustion lab, his team tests how vegetation burns under different conditions, helping utilities make informed decisions about the fuels growing beneath their power lines. Visit our website go.uidaho.edu/thevandaltheory​. Email us at [email protected]. Learn about Idaho’s premier research university, University of Idaho, at uidaho.edu. Music “Young Republicans” by Steve Combs (go.uidaho.edu/3U3MNHs) via freemusicarchive.org, not modified (go.uidaho.edu/3Q6LeY5). Chapters (00:00) Introduction (01:00) Identifying flammable vegetation (01:45) Combustion lab (02:32) Helping power companies prevent fires (05:18) Why do power companies care now? (06:38) Why do we care? (07:48) Immediate impacts