It has recently been reported that the Willow Fire was “human caused.” But the larger story is that the conditions making fires like this increasingly destructive have also been human caused. Ask longtime residents whether they’ve ever experienced a wildfire like this threatening Leadville – they will tell you they have not. But if we want fewer summers like this one, we must also confront the larger human decisions that have made fires like the Willow Fire increasingly likely. The question is no longer whether this fire was human caused, it’s whether we are willing to address the larger human causes behind it.