Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists
SOC Code: 33-2022
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists carries a 49% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $52,380 and +14.6% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 2,900 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 49% AI exposure, Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists sits 12 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 86% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
53/100
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage D $52,380
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth A+ +14.6%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 49% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists keeps an HS / some college bar (333 of 832) and sits in Much faster (31 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
49% Higher than most higher than 86% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists's High automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 33-2022) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Relay messages about emergencies, accidents, locations of crew and personnel, and fire hazard conditions.
- 2. Conduct wildland firefighting training.
- 3. Estimate sizes and characteristics of fires, and report findings to base camps by radio or telephone.
- 4. Direct crews working on firelines during forest fires.
- 5. Locate forest fires on area maps, using azimuth sighters and known landmarks.
- 6. Extinguish smaller fires with portable extinguishers, shovels, and axes.
- 7. Patrol assigned areas, looking for forest fires, hazardous conditions, and weather phenomena.
- 8. Compile and report meteorological data, such as temperature, relative humidity, wind direction and velocity, and types of cloud formations.
- 9. Examine and inventory firefighting equipment, such as axes, fire hoses, shovels, pumps, buckets, and fire extinguishers, to determine amount and condition.
- 10. Educate the public about fire safety and prevention.
Key Skills Required
- Critical Thinking
- Speaking
- Coordination
- Active Listening
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Complex Problem Solving
- Monitoring
- Instructing
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
Knowledge Areas
- Administration and Management
- Customer and Personal Service
- Education and Training
- Personnel and Human Resources
- Public Safety and Security
- Law and Government
- Computers and Electronics
- English Language
- Transportation
- Administrative
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists?
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists has an AI exposure score of 49%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists is projected to grow by 14.6% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 2,900 workers.
What skills are needed for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists?
Key skills for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists include Critical Thinking, Speaking, Coordination, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists earn?
The median annual wage for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists is $52,380, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists?
The typical entry-level education for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect Less than 5 years of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Moderate-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists?
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (49% here).
- Cartographers and photogrammetrists · AI exposure 49%
- Computer network architects · AI exposure 49%
- Computer numerically controlled tool programmers · AI exposure 49%
- Entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling · AI exposure 49%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+14.6% here).
- Health information technologists and medical registrars · growth +14.7%
- Financial managers · growth +14.8%
- Cooks, restaurant · growth +14.9%
- Speech-language pathologists · growth +15.0%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
What to do with this
Use Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).