Wildfire Resilient Structures Conference

Wildfire Resilient Structures (WiReS) ConferenceDate: Winter 2022/2023Location: TBDPurpose

The Wildfire Resistant Structures (WiReS) conference addresses the WUI fire risk problems inherent to the built environment to support resilient and equitab

How much of a problem is the CO2 emitted by CA Wildfires?

Over 111 million metric tons of CO2 were emitted by wildfires in California for the 2020 year. The transportation sector is the only area to have emitted more carbon dioxide at over 169 million metric tons. While from the outset, that looks pretty bad, you may still wonder, "In actuality, how bad is the wildfire smoke for Climate Change?"

In an interview with the SF Chronical, AQRC Director, Tony Wexler, stated that the wildfire carbon emissions are of almost no concern for him in relation to climate change.

"The bigger story is climate change"

Air Quality Research Center Director, Tony Wexler, spoke with Mark Kaufman of Mashable about the smoke and poor air quality in Sydney from the Australia fires. Sydney's pollution levels were more than 11 times the hazardous level. 

In his article, Sydney, engulfed in smoke, has a ghastly air quality problem, Kaufman shares:

Fast-Moving Wildfires Cause Concern

Californians are on high-alert due to fast moving winds and wildfires. The recent wind has caused several Californian fires to spread quickly leading to evacuations. PG&E has been cutting power in various locations to prevent possible fires due to these high winds. With various subsidies and insurance coverages, home builders do not worry about possible climate change issues related to where they are building.

Letters respond to Tad Friend’s piece about Impossible Foods

Sacred Cows

Tad Friend, in his piece on Impossible Foods, a startup that makes imitation meat in the hope of solving climate change, writes, “Every four pounds of beef you eat contributes to as much global warming as flying from New York to London” (“Value Meal,” September 30th). As a professor who studies the environmental impact of livestock production, I was surprised that Friend relied on such a high per-pound emissions rate for beef, since most estimates are much lower.

VICE Explores Worsening California Air Quality

Anthony Wexler explores what is causing such poor levels of air quality, why short-term solutions aren’t working, and what we can do to mitigate these scenarios.