Cascading consequences and interventions for hazards after wildfire in northern California

This report documents the process and outcomes of a workshop convened by the U.S. Geological Survey in December 2024 to identify cascading postfire hazards and other effects stemming from the 2021 Dixie Fire in northern California and to explore potential intervention strategies. The Postfire Hazards and Consequences Workshop brought together stakeholders with expertise across disciplines relevant to postfire management. The two-day workshop applied the chains of consequences methodology developed by the Department of the Interior Strategic Sciences Group. Workshop participants identified key issues emerging from postfire conditions and discussed actionable strategies to enhance resilience in fire-prone regions. Findings revealed a complex network of interacting consequences, many of which transcended disciplinary boundaries and affected multiple sectors of society, underscoring the systemic nature of wildfire recovery challenges and indicating that long-term planning approaches could be integrated to help reduce society’s risks from wildfire.