The United States expects some western states to face a severe bushfire season this northern summer as a result of drought, reduced snowfall during winter and expected high temperatures during June.

Testifying before a Senate inquiry, Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey said the outlook is “rather ominous” and called for a partnership between the public and private sectors to deal with the issue.

“We believe insurers should be part of this partnership,” he said, because his department believes mitigation is as important as the ability to fight the fires once they have started.