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Wildfire Hazard Zones See Staggering 103% Job Growth in US West

Job growth in high wildfire risk zones is surging. But as employment booms, so do concerns about safety and economic resilience.

In this picture at the top we have grass, mountains and greenery & in the bottom image we have...
In this picture at the top we have grass, mountains and greenery & in the bottom image we have vehicles on the road with fire.

Wildfire Hazard Zones See Staggering 103% Job Growth in US West

Job growth in areas of very high wildfire hazard in the US West has surged, with a staggering 103 percent increase from 1990 to 2020. In 2020, approximately 1.7 million jobs were in these high-risk zones, double the number reported three decades ago.

This rapid growth outpaces other hazard categories. Six hot spots have emerged: Southern California, Denver-Boulder area in Colorado, Sierra Nevada foothills of California, Southern Oregon, Flagstaff-Globe area in Arizona, and Central Utah near Salt Lake City. California leads with 60 percent of jobs in high- and very-high-wildfire-risk areas.

Job growth is particularly high in areas of highest wildfire hazard. However, wages in these areas tend to be slightly lower than elsewhere in the West, except for the Southern California hot spot.

These six hot spots have seen job growth that outpaces both regional and other very-high-wildfire-hazard areas. As wildfire risk increases, so does employment, raising concerns about future workforce safety and economic resilience.

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