80 Prescribed Burning Gives Fire Crews A Fighting Chance
Wildfire doesn’t need Hollywood flames to become a crisis, it just needs the right fuel load, a dry spell, and one careless spark. We sit down with Richard Bailey of the Peak District Moorland Group and Callum Kippen, a Highland grouse keeper and co-owner of Bright Spark training, to talk about what’s really driving wildfire risk across UK moorland and peatland, from the Scottish Highlands to the Peak District National Park. We get into the on-the-ground reality of the Carrbridge Dava fire, including why peat fires can be so hard to extinguish and how tactics like technical backburns can stop a blaze from going landscape scale. We also unpack the controversy around prescribed burning and muirburn: what it’s for, how it creates an uneven-age vegetation mosaic that slows fire spread, and why a little planned smoke can prevent far worse smoke pollution and PM2.5 exposure during an uncontrolled wildfire. Along the way, we talk equipment and capability, from fogging units and leaf blowers to the quiet but critical role estates and keepers often play in wildfire response. The conversation also turns to the bigger forces that shape risk: land use change, rewetting debates, shrinking training opportunities, and the surge in wild camping and disposable barbecues near high-traffic landscapes. If you care about moorland management, peatland restoration, public safety, and the future of wildfire prevention in the UK, this one will give you practical context and a lot to think about. Subscribe for more field-tested conversations, share this with someone who loves the hills, and leave a review to help more listeners find the show. What do you think actually reduces wildfire risk: stricter bans, better education, or smarter land management? Support the show Instagram https://www.instagram.com/the_outdoor_gibbon/
