The Return of Good Fire
How Native cultural burning can protect from megafires and restore the land.
For thousands of years, tribes used cultural burning to keep forests, food systems, and ecosystems healthy.
In 1850, California outlawed Native burning, criminalizing tribal knowledge and forcing tribes off the land.
The result: overcrowded, weakened forests packed with fuel, leading to today’s catastrophic megafires.
Cultural fire is more than prevention, it restores plants, supports wildlife, protects food systems, and revives traditions.
Today, laws are shifting and tribes are reclaiming fire practices, proving that good fire heals both land and culture.
Two hundred years ago, much of California’s Sierra Nevada looked nothing like the dense, overgrown forests we see today. Early Spanish explorers described the area as a “well-tended garden.” Open meadows, widely spaced trees, and abundant wildlife.
That landscape didn’t happen by accident. It was created and maintained by Native communities through cultural burning. A careful, intentional use of fire to keep ecosystems healthy.
Now, as California faces record-breaking wildfires year after year, scientists and policymakers are realizing what tribes have always known: fire isn’t just something to fight, it’s something to work with.
What Is Cultural Burning?
Cultural burns aren’t the same as the “prescribed burns” done by government agencies.
Yes, they reduce excess brush and prevent dangerous wildfires, but they go much further. They’re designed to:
Promote healthy growth of food and medicinal plants
Create better habitat for deer, birds, and other wildlife
Protect water sources by preventing overgrowth
Keep the balance between different species
These burns follow cycles that can span decades, often burning an area several times in 10 years, then letting it rest for 20 as a part of a 30-year plan that looks ahead not just to the next fire season, but to the next seven generations.
As North Fork Mono Tribal Chairman Ron W. Goode says, “Some of these plants haven’t seen fire in 120 years. They want it, they’re crying for it.”
What Went Wrong
In 1850, California outlawed Native burning practices. Tribes were removed from their lands, and state and federal agencies adopted a policy of total fire suppression.
The result? Forests became unnaturally dense. Trees now compete for scarce water and sunlight, making them weaker and more vulnerable to pests like bark beetles, which have killed millions of trees, leaving behind dangerous tinder for the next wildfire.
Research shows climate change plays a small role in today’s megafires, but the bigger factor is how badly the forests have been mismanaged.
More Than Fire Prevention
For Native communities, cultural burning isn’t just about managing wildfires it’s about restoring a way of life.
Traditional crafts: Yurok, Karuk, and Pomo basket weavers rely on hazelnut stems that grow best after certain burns. Without fire, the plants, and the weaving knowledge, disappear.
Food sovereignty: Burns reduce pests in acorn crops, increase deer populations, and boost nutrition in wild foods.
Cultural survival: Fire keeps ecosystems in the condition needed for ceremonies, hunting, and gathering.
A recent Stanford-backed study found that cultural burns increased the growth of high-quality basket materials by up to 10 times compared to untouched areas.
Change Is Happening Slowly
In 2022, California passed a law making it easier for tribes to conduct cultural burns. The U.S. Forest Service and other agencies are beginning to partner with tribes on large-scale projects, sometimes covering more than a million acres.
Groups like the Tribal EcoRestoration Alliance are training tribal members in both traditional burning techniques and modern restoration skills, creating jobs while healing the land.
Still, challenges remain. In many cases, agencies will let tribal experts observe burns but not lead them, even though the tribes have generations of expertise.
Why This Matters to Everyone
Cultural burning isn’t just a Native issue. It’s a climate solution, a wildfire prevention strategy, and a blueprint for how people can live in balance with the land.
As UC Cooperative Extension fire advisor Lenya N. Quinn-Davidson puts it:
“The fires we’ve been experiencing are a projection of our own disconnection. Cultural practitioners can help us rebuild the relationship.”
California’s future will be shaped by how we choose to manage fire. Embracing Native knowledge could mean fewer megafires, healthier forests, and stronger communities.
Want to learn more? Check out organizations like the Yurok Cultural Fire Management Council and the Tribal EcoRestoration Alliance. Many offer public workshops, volunteer opportunities, and ways to support the return of “good fire” to the land.