Smoke from California/Oregon wildfires reaching the East Coast opens up some interesting new legal/political possibilities. The smoke is way outside state borders, all the way on the other side of the country, so that puts the problem pretty squarely within federal jurisdiction. Either a federal agency could step in to force better forest management on the states, or a federal lawsuit could be brought for smoke-induced damages against California/Oregon. That would potentially make it a lot more difficult for local homeowners to block controlled burns.
[Epistemic status: highly speculative]
Smoke from California/Oregon wildfires reaching the East Coast opens up some interesting new legal/political possibilities. The smoke is way outside state borders, all the way on the other side of the country, so that puts the problem pretty squarely within federal jurisdiction. Either a federal agency could step in to force better forest management on the states, or a federal lawsuit could be brought for smoke-induced damages against California/Oregon. That would potentially make it a lot more difficult for local homeowners to block controlled burns.