2026 Big Sky GeoCon - From Data to Design

Federal wildfire fuel reduction projects lack systematic methods for identifying affected populations. The Wildfire Adapted Missoula project authorizes hazardous fuels treatments without environmental justice analysis despite federal mandates. This study develops a parcel-level, terrain-aware distance decay framework to identify affected populations based on spatial accessibility. Using the Blue Mountain treatment area, three distance metrics are compared: Euclidean (baseline planar distance), topographic (slope-adjusted), and fire transmission (cost-distance accounting for terrain and fuel conditions that constrain fire spread). Results inform environmental justice screening where spatial equity assessment remains absent from federal wildfire decision-making.