California Air Resources Board

Webinar

Apr 2026

Public Webinar (April 23, 2026): California Non-Wildfire Structure and Vehicle Fire Emissions Inventory Update

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) cordially invites the public to a webinar presentation on updates to the statewide non-wildfire structure and vehicle fire emissions inventory. CARB staff will be presenting an updated methodology, including new activity data sources, consumption factors, and emissions factors. Updated emissions include both criteria pollutants and greenhouse gases.

Webinar from 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM on April 23, 2026.

Please register for the webinar in advance at the following link: Webinar Registration

• Webinar announcement
• Presentation slide deck - available on the morning of April 23
• Webinar recording - will be posted here after the webinar 

Webinar

Oct 2025

Public Webinar (October 16, 2025): California Wildfire and Prescribed Fire Emission Inventory

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) hosted a public webinar on updates to the statewide wildfire and prescribed fire emission inventory. CARB staff presented refinements to emission quantification methodology, expansion of activity data sources, and a new methodological framework for generating an event-based inventory by utilizing satellite fire detection data. In an event-based inventory, emissions are estimated for each day of fire and by their geospatially explicit location. These inventory enhancements will provide more detailed and accurate fire emissions information to support various air quality management applications and facilitate a better understanding of the impact of fire emissions on air quality. The inventory data also support tracking progress towards California’s statewide goals for climate change and land management.

• Webinar announcement
• Presentation slide deck
• Webinar recording

FAQ

Sep 2022

FAQ: Wildfire Emissions

As California continues to see extensive impacts due to wildfires every year, CARB has prepared a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document that discusses the agency's role in addressing emissions due to wildfires and prescribed fire.

FAQ: Wildfire Emissions (Last updated Sep 16, 2022)

Report

Nov 2021

Report: California’s Historical Wildfire Activity before Modern Wildfire Suppression (November 2021)

This report provides an overview of California’s fire history over the past 1,500 years and summarizes the dynamic interactions of climatic, environmental and human drivers that shaped the fire landscape through time. It synthesizes the current scientific understanding of historical fire regimes and estimation of GHG emissions from historical fire before the 18^th century. The report was prepared in response to Senate Bill 901 (Dodd, Statutes of 2018, chaptered 626). Working closely with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) and academic and agency experts with research and practical expertise in historical and contemporary fire in California and the western United States, CARB staff conducted a comprehensive review of the available literature and quantitative data regarding historical fire emissions throughout the history of California’s diverse ecosystems.

Report: California's Historical Wildfire Activity before Modern Wildfire Suppression

Webinar

Dec 2020

Public Webinar (December 1, 2020): Estimation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Forest Management Activities, Contemporary Wildfire, and Historical Fire 

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) staff hosted a public webinar on staff’s estimation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from contemporary wildfire and forest management activities, and a presentation on historical fire activity before modern fire suppression. In the first part of the webinar, staff presented the methodology and estimation results of GHG emissions from wildfire and prescribed burn, as well as the amount of ecosystem carbon transformed by forest management activities (which may include tree harvest, removals, and planting; prescribed burn; and other vegetation fuels management to reduce fire risk). In the second part of the webinar, staff presented a scientific literature review of quantitative historical fire data that are needed for modeling fire emissions. The data and literature review focuses on the 1,400 years before modern fire suppression began in 1910.

• Presentation slides

For additional information about CARB staff’s most recent assessment of ecosystem carbon transformation due to forest management activities, see the Natural Working Land Inventory program webpage.