This feature explores topics of enduring ecological concern – fire regimes, climate change, and forest management of the North American West. The authors describe the dual challenges of past forest management legacies and fire exclusion confronted by a changing fire regime due to the coupling of stark climatic changes and abundant fuels. They argue for intentional management to create more drought- and fire-resilient forests, emphasizing key forest characteristics that conserve biodiversity and ecosystem values, while recognizing that this implies the use of mechanical thinning, prescribed burning and managed wildfire as tools.

中文翻译：

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特邀专题：气候变化和西部野火

本专题探讨了持久的生态问题——北美西部的火灾制度、气候变化和森林管理。作者描述了由于明显的气候变化和丰富的燃料的耦合，过去森林管理遗产和火势变化面临的双重挑战。他们主张有意管理以创造更多抗旱和防火的森林，强调保护生物多样性和生态系统价值的关键森林特征，同时认识到这意味着使用机械间伐、规定的燃烧和管理的野火作为工具。