You are currently viewing 7 Steps L.A. Could Take to Gird Against Future Wildfires

Fire and wind are certain to shape the future of Los Angeles as the world warms.

Los Angeles had started taking steps to prepare. But there are lessons it can learn from other cities adapting to extreme fire weather: managing yards; taking care of neighbors; making it easier to get out of harm’s way.

One big challenge, among many, is that plans like these need to be widely adopted. One home is only as safe as the home next door. “If your neighbor doesn’t do anything, and you do, if that home burns it will create so much radiant heat, yours will burn too,” said Kimiko Barrett of Headwaters Economics in Bozeman, Mont., a company that advises cities on reducing wildfire damage risk.

Neighbors matter. Building codes and zoning rules matter. But perhaps most of all, money matters. Building for an age of fire can be expensive, and often out of reach for

Keep reading this article on The New York Times Energy & Environment.

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