Listen Live
Donate
 on air
    Schedule

    KCRW

    Read & Explore

    • News
    • Entertainment
    • Food
    • Culture
    • Events

    Listen

    • Live Radio
    • Music
    • Podcasts
    • Full Schedule

    Information

    • About
    • Careers
    • Help / FAQ
    • Newsletters
    • Contact

    Support

    • Become a Member
    • Become a VIP
    • Ways to Give
    • Shop
    • Member Perks

    Become a Member

    Donate to KCRW to support this cultural hub for music discovery, in-depth journalism, community storytelling, and free events. You'll become a KCRW Member and get a year of exclusive benefits.

    DonateGive Monthly

    Copyright 2026 KCRW. All rights reserved.

    Report a Bug|Privacy Policy|Terms of Service|
    Cookie Policy
    |FCC Public Files|

    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand

    Press Play with Madeleine Brand

    Controlled burns could lessen wildfires, says Stanford study

    Fires in Northern California continue to burn. Because of climate change, fire seasons have become increasingly worse.

    • rss
    • apple-podcasts
    • spotify
    • Share
    By Madeleine Brand • Aug 26, 2020 • 5m Listen

    Fires in Northern California continue to burn. Because of climate change, fire seasons have become increasingly worse. A recent study from Stanford looks at how large wildfires could be prevented via the use of prescribed fires, which means intentionally burning dried out vegetation.

    The full episode

    2 of 5
    Controlled burns and dam repairs may help protect California from dangerous weather
    1. 0:00TV critic compares and contrasts Republican and Democratic National Conventions
    2. 13:40Controlled burns could lessen wildfires, says Stanford studyYou’re reading this
    3. 19:09California’s dams need repairs to survive future major flood, says author
    4. 24:25LA artist Lauren Halsey brings organic produce to her South LA community during pandemic
    5. 34:40How Pablo Picasso’s mistress and muse, Dora Maar, influenced art history
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Madeleine Brand

      Host, 'Press Play'

    • KCRW placeholder

      Sarah Sweeney

      Vice President of Talk Programming, KCRW

    • KCRW placeholder

      Michell Eloy

      Former Producer/Line Editor, Press Play

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Amy Ta

      Digital News & Culture Editor

    • KCRW placeholder

      Rebecca Miller

      PhD Candidate in environment and resources, Stanford University

      NewsEnvironmentCalifornia

    The full episode

    2 of 5
    Controlled burns and dam repairs may help protect California from dangerous weather
    1. 0:00TV critic compares and contrasts Republican and Democratic National Conventions
    2. 13:40Controlled burns could lessen wildfires, says Stanford studyYou’re reading this
    3. 19:09California’s dams need repairs to survive future major flood, says author
    4. 24:25LA artist Lauren Halsey brings organic produce to her South LA community during pandemic
    5. 34:40How Pablo Picasso’s mistress and muse, Dora Maar, influenced art history
    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand