Fact check: California uses controlled burns to mitigate wildfires
The claim: California sets its own fires and says they are from climate change
Video of a flamethrower being used in a forest is circulating on social media, with some users claiming there's something fishy about California wildfires.
"Apparently California sets their own forest fires and blames them on climate change effects!!!" says an Oct. 17 Instagram post that includes the video.
A similar iteration of the post was shared on Instagram by another user, receiving more than 600 likes in three days.
"Sooooo THIS is our TRUE climate change... got it," the post says.
California officials have indeed attributed the growing number of serious fires to climate change. But the claim about intentionally setting the fires is nonsense.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection uses controlled burns to reduce fire intensity, fire officials say. There is no evidence in the posts that the state purposefully starts dangerous fires and blames them on climate change.
The social media users sharing the claim also failed to provide any evidence supporting the assertion when contacted by Paste BN.
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California uses controlled burns as a technique to mitigate wildfires
The California fire agency purposefully sets fires in order to minimize the threat of destruction from accidental fires. That way, when there is a vehicle collision, plane crash, or other accident, there is less "fuel" for the fire, said Sacramento Fire Battalion Chief Issac Sanchez.
More: Fighting fire with fire: Controlled burns remain essential as US wildfires intensify
"If it's appropriate for the situation, if it's the right tool for the job (we'll set fires)," Sanchez said. "If you're referring specifically to large destructive fires – of course, we do not (set them). It's patently ridiculous on its face."
The video in the post shows a prescribed burn, the California fire agency told Politifact in 2020. However, Sanchez was not able to identify where the video originated.
It has been the subject of misinformation for years, though. Some online users have claimed the fire was in Russia, while others falsely claimed it was a Chinese drone starting fires on the West Coast. However, former California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokesperson Lynne Tolmachoff, who is now retired, told PolitiFact it was a flamethrower mounted on a helicopter in California.
A prescribed burn "mimics natural processes, restores fire to its historic role in wildland ecosystems, and provides significant fire hazard reduction benefits that enhance public and firefighter safety" according to the California Vegetation Management Program website.
Our rating: False
Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that California sets its own fires and says they are from climate change. California uses controlled burns in some cases to mitigate wildfires, but there is no evidence the state purposefully set dangerous fires and blamed them on climate change.
Our fact-check sources:
- Issac Sanchez, Oct. 24, Phone call with Paste BN
- PolitiFact, Oct. 20, Video shows controlled burn, not climate change hoax
- California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, accessed Oct. 24, Vegetation Management Program
- Paste BN, May 22, As wildfires threaten, prescribed burns can protect America's forests
- California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, accessed Oct. 25-26, Vegetation Management Program
- PolitiFact, Sept. 16, 2020, Twitter video does not show a drone starting West Coast wildfires
- Paste BN, Sept. 22, 2020, Fact check: Western Canada, Mexico have experienced climate-change linked fires, too
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