Year of Award
2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Type
Master of Science (MS)
Degree Name
Resource Conservation
Department or School/College
Society and Conservation
Committee Chair
Dr. Elizabeth Covelli Metcalf
Commitee Members
Dr. Laurie Yung, Dr. Justin Angle
Keywords
prescribed fire, prescribed burning, risk perception, trust, qualitative research, Montana
Abstract
Prescribed fire is widely recognized as an important tool for reducing hazardous fuels, restoring ecological processes, moderating future wildfire severity, and supporting landscape resilience across the western United States. Despite broad agreement on these benefits, implementation remains below the scale needed to address current wildfire and forest-management challenges. Research has identified barriers including liability concerns, staffing shortages, regulatory constraints, limited burn windows, and public opposition. However, much of this research relies on surveys that identify broad patterns but provide limited insight into how practitioners interpret uncertainty, negotiate competing risks, and make decisions within specific operational and organizational contexts.
This thesis examines prescribed fire decision-making among practitioners in Western Montana using a grounded theory-informed qualitative approach. Twenty-four semi-structured interviews were conducted with decision-makers representing federal, state, local, nonprofit, and private organizations. Participants were recruited through purposive sampling and chain referral. Transcripts were analyzed through an iterative coding process, resulting in five themes related to risk, uncertainty, and implementation.
Findings indicate that prescribed fire decision-making is shaped by interconnected experiential, organizational, institutional, cultural, and relational factors. Participants described fire as both necessary and inherently uncertain, requiring them to combine technical information with experience, intuition, and professional judgment. Experience did not eliminate uncertainty but helped practitioners distinguish between manageable and unacceptable conditions. Implementation also depended on staffing, equipment, authority, organizational support, and collaborative capacity. Participants considered biophysical risks alongside liability, public scrutiny, media attention, professional consequences, and organizational pressures. Trust supported coordination and resource sharing but functioned as one element of broader collaborative relationships rather than an independent explanation for implementation. Many participants viewed wildfire, smoke, and environmental change as unavoidable and understood prescribed fire as a means of influencing how fire occurs rather than eliminating it from the landscape.
This research contributes to the human dimensions of fire-management literature by showing how commonly identified constraints interact within practitioners’ decision processes. The findings provide a contextually grounded, practitioner-centered account of prescribed fire implementation and identify opportunities to strengthen organizational support, professional development, interagency coordination, and implementation capacity in fire-adapted landscapes.
Recommended Citation
Elias, Jazzelle Bibiana, "Understanding Prescribed Fire Decision-Making in Western Montana: Trust, Risk, and the Culture of Burning" (2026). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 12732.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/12732
© Copyright 2026 Jazzelle Bibiana Elias