California has more than 100 million dead trees in its forests — and no easy way to deal with them. Based on aerial surveys, the U.S. Forest Service concluded that more than 102 million trees have died across the state’s forests since 2010.

More than half — 62 million — died this year alone. There are 4.1 billion live trees in California forests, according to U.S. Forest Service data.

So the dead trees represent about 2.5% of that population. The die-off raise many ecological questions that officials are still trying to grapple with.

The dead trees represent a major fire threat. But removing them poses logistical, financial and public safety risks. So what happens to all those dead trees? There …