Willamalane Park and Recreation District's Thurston Hills Natural Area in Oregon will be the focus of an upcoming project to remove excess fuels to lessen the threat of future wildfires. FIRES A s climate change creates warmer and drier conditions - and as urban developments encroach on wilderness areas across the United States - the risk and potential for damage caused by wildfires increases. " Wildfire is an environmental risk that is exacerbated by the coming together of people and landscapes with large stockpiles of unburned fuel, " says Jonah Susskind, senior research associate for SWA, an international landscape architecture, planning and urban design firm. PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | APRIL 2 0 2 3 | Parks & Recreation 41