In extreme conditions, no amount of brush clearance can guarantee protection. Indeed, too much clearing can in fact leave ...

But wildfire experts say cutting down Southern California's chaparral won't make the region safer from wildfires. In fact, ...

In fact, because of the local ecology, they say clearing vast swaths of native brush could actually make the landscape even more flammable. That's the opposite of what California's forests need.

In a congressional hearing this month, witnesses blamed “overgrown brush” and environmental regulations they say prevent it from being cleared. But wildfire experts say cutting down Southern ...