Forest worker observing a controlled burn. Photo: iStock/AscentXmedia
Study Explores Climate-Friendly Actions to Reduce Wildfire Risks
To prevent destructive wildfires, the U.S. Forest Service thins forests and places the cuttings, called residue, into piles for burning. However, a recent study led by Jake Barker ’24 MF and a team of researchers projected that a significant amount of carbon dioxide is released during these events, which works against climate-change mitigation goals. The burns are also financially costly.
The residue burns by the Forest Service are being used to prevent catastrophic fires that have been fueled by logging, drought, climate-change, and previous government-mandated fire suppression that have led to the accumulation of debris and dense stands of small trees, which provide fuel for enormous blazes.
The study, published in Frontiers for Global Change, simulated residue burning across western U.S. forests, and estimated that the burns contributed over 1.7 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually. The researchers found that that costs for labor and equipment were also notably higher than had been reported.
The authors suggest that alternatives to burning residues, such as using them for biofuels or burying them to sequester carbon, could help reduce fire risk and carbon emissions. Steep forest terrain makes removing residues for other uses difficult and costly. They recommend the Forest Service seek subsidies to aid in funding infrastructure for climate-friendly alternatives.
“Forests play a big part in natural climate solutions,” Barker said. “We’re demonstrating the opportunity for novel and creative pathways to transform residues into a natural climate solution.”
February 25, 2025
More News in Brief
UK Lawmakers Visit Yale to Explore Nature-Based Climate Solutions Up Close
The Yale Hixon Center for Urban Sustainability recently hosted a delegation of Members of the British Parliament as part of a four-day Connecticut visit organized by the British American Parliamentary Group. The six MPs met with Karen Seto, the Frederick C. Hixon Professor of Geography and Urbanization Science, to discuss climate policy, urbanization, and the role of cities in addressing climate change.
The visit included a tour of New Haven’s bioswales. Bioswales are a landscaping feature designed to slow, filter, and redirect stormwater runoff, slowly filtering it through sediment into the groundwater or allowing it to be absorbed by native plants. They help prevent flooding and reduce pollution that would otherwise flow into rivers and streams. The Urban Resources Initiative has partnered with the city to help lead the construction and management of the bioswales. Approximately 200 bioswales have been installed across downtown New Haven through this broader effort, with about 50 adjacent to Yale’s campus.
“Seeing the bioswale presented me with a simple and effective option I want to take back and suggest to my local authority. Not only would it alleviate flooding problems, but it could also be an attractive green feature that could enhance areas, " said Christine Jardine, Member of Parliament for Edinburgh West.
The visit also provided an opportunity to explore collaboration between UK policymakers, the City of New Haven, and YSE on sustainability and climate resilience initiatives.
March 27, 2026
Karen Seto
Frederick C. Hixon Professor of Geography and Urbanization Science; Director of the Hixon Center for Urban Sustainability; Co-Director of the Yale Center for Geospatial Solutions
Colleen Murphy-Dunning
Program Director, Hixon Center for Urban Sustainability, Urban Resources Initiative (URI); Lecturer in Urban and Community Forestry
YSE Doctoral Candidate Honored with ESA Policy Award
Jonathan Gewirtzman, a doctoral candidate in ecosystem ecology and biogeochemistry, has received the 2026 Katherine S. McCarter Graduate Student Policy Award from the Ecological Society of America. He is one of 20 students from universities across the U.S. to be honored with the award.
Recipients of the award travel to Washington, D.C. for policy, communication and career training and they meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
Gewirtzman, a National Science Foundation Research Fellow, investigates greenhouse gas cycling in forests and wetlands aimed at informing strategies for mitigating natural emissions and enhancing nature-based climate solutions.
“ESA has been an important community for me throughout my graduate career — a place to connect with ecologists across subfields and to build leadership experience as an officer of the Biogeosciences Section. I'm excited for the opportunity to learn firsthand from scientists and policymakers working at that interface,” Gewirtzman said.
February 19, 2026
Scientists Map Long-Term Water Contamination Risks at Ohio Train Derailment Site
Yale scientists are leading a research project on the long-term environmental effects of the 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio that released hazardous chemicals, including vinyl chloride, into the air and water.
Michelle Bell, the Mary E. Pinchot Professor of Environmental Health, James Saiers, the Clifton R. Musser Professor of Hydrology, and Nicole Deziel, associate professor of epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health, are simulating groundwater flow patterns to pinpoint the direction in which the contaminates are like to migrate. The information will be used to determine locations that should receive priority for drinking water quality testing.
“Water-related concerns were top of mind for many residents, and we hope that our project’s state-of-the-art hydrologic model can inform the situation in East Palestine as well as preparation and response for future issues,” said Bell.
The work is part of a collaboration with the University of Kentucky, and the University of Pittsburg, and is supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences of the National Institutes of Health.
February 19, 2026
Cleanup efforts continue on a stretch of track in East Palestine, Ohio where a Norfolk Southern train derailed in 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
Michelle Bell
Senior Associate Dean of Research and Director of Doctoral Studies; Mary E. Pinchot Professor of Environmental Health
James Saiers
Clifton R. Musser Professor of Hydrology
Nicole Deziel
Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Yale School of Public Health