Cultural Burning: Many California Native American tribes practiced cultural burning for centuries. This involved carefully controlled, low-intensity fires to:
Improve soil health
Encourage the growth of certain plants
Maintain open landscapes for hunting and gathering
Reduce the risk of larger, more destructive wildfires
Suppression: European colonization led to the suppression of these traditional fire practices. This, along with other factors, contributed to the buildup of fuel and increased the severity of wildfires in recent decades.