Inmate firefighters make their way up a canyon to battle the watch Sawtooth fire in the hills of Morongo Valley, California in this July 14, 2006 file photo. California's wildfires are burning through state cash at an alarming rate, with the government spending more than half its annual firefighting budget just two months into the fiscal year -- even before the traditional fire season began on September 1, 2009. California's firefighting effort could face new strains if the prison system, also trying to cut costs, releases 27,000 or more low-risk inmates -- the type the firefighting agency depends on for cheap, abundant labor. REUTERS/Fred Greaves/Files (UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY DISASTER)
REUTERS/FRED GREAVES