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Oregon is bracing for another historic wildfire season, with 95% of the state abnormally dry and half of it in extreme drought, according to federal reports. Similar conditions left the state a tinderbox the past two summers.
But one aspect of the state’s climate catastrophe will be different this year: You’ll be able to see images of it.
On March 23, Gov. Kate Brown signed into law House Bill 4087, which requires officials to “grant credentialed or documented representatives of news media organizations access to scenes of wildfires or natural disasters on public lands that are otherwise closed to the public.”
Previously, reporters and photographers were only allowed to visit the scenes of blazes under the escort of firefighters or other first responders, which was often denied. The new law says government agencies can still require an escort, but must provide one.
The bill, which had bipartisan sponsorship, was championed by the Oregon chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Rachel Alexander, chair of the chapter’s public records committee, says the new law will help journalists “provide some of those striking images that show people that fires are serious and underscore the need for evacuations.”
