DOI: 10.5061/dryad.gxd2547z8
title: Changing wildfire complexity highlights the need for institutional adaptation

description: As wildfires grow increasingly complex, institutional adaptation-
 adjusting institutions to respond effectively to environmental changes- is
 crucial for enhancing wildfire management capabilities. However,
 institutional adaptation is a challenge as the connection between
 environmental changes and human institutions remains poorly understood.
 Here, by analyzing trends in five incident characteristics linked to
 institutional complexity at national and regional levels from 1999 to 2020
 in the USA, we show national trends of increasing institutional complexity
 of wildfire indicators associated with wildfire governance, logistics,
 management, resource scarcity, and network coordination. Substantial
 regional variation was observed, with some cases exhibiting trends in
 opposite directions. For example, while jurisdictional complexity
 increased in the West, it decreased in the East. These results offer
 insight into the linkage between environmental change and demands for
 institutional adaptation, and provide an empirical basis for considering
 potential tradeoffs of different institutional adaptations in light of
 competing pressures.
description: # Changing wildfire complexity highlights the need for institutional
 adaptation
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.9cnp5hqsk](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.9cnp5hqsk) **Nowell, B., Jones, K., McGovern, S.M. 2025. Changing wildfire complexity highlights the need for institutional adaptation. Nature Climate Change.**  #### Description of the data and file structure Information about each input dataset available on Dryad and the attribute descriptions. **1) incids_mtbs_final.gpkg** : MTBS geospatial wildfire boundaries and engaged jurisdictions fid: unique record identifier incident_id: unique fire identifier fed_engag_cnt: count of federal jurisdictions within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius trib_engag_cnt: count of tribal jurisdictions within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius st_engag_cnt: count of states within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius cnty_engag_cnt: count of counties within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius cenpl_engag_cnt: count of census places within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius START_YEAR: year wildfire ignition occurred * Dataset is the final output from the [Jurisdictional Complexity github repository](https://github.com/kejones8/Jurisdictional_Complexity). Review repository .README for additional data source and availability information. * Citation for published manuscript:  **Jones, K., Vukomanovic, J.V., Nowell, B., McGovern, S.M. 2024. Mapping Wildfire Jurisdictional Complexity Reveals Opportunities for Regional Co-Management. Global Environmental Change 84, 102084. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2024.102804](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2024.102804)** **2) raw_pl_data_2020.csv** : daily preparedness level (1-5) month: month of the year day_of_Month: day of the month 1999: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2000: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2001: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2002: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2003: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2004: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2005: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2006: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2007: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2008: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2009: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2010: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2011: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2012: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2013: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2014: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2015: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2016: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2017: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2018: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2019: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year 2020: preparedness level rating (1-5) for day/month/year Data received March 2023 through personal communications with the National Interagency Fire Center.