USFS Retirees Say Fire Policy Unsustainable!

[jeepndel]

USDA Forest Service Retirees Call National Forest Policies Unsustainable!

The National Association of Forest Service Retirees (NAFSR) have called the USDA Forest Service policies and procedures for forest health and wildland fire suppression unsustainable! They have offered up a 10-point plan of actions to clarify and improve the current fire policy situation. In abbreviated form, it calls for:
1. More active management of forests and grasslands;
2. Reduced fuel loading and more prescribed fire;
3. Review and learning from past big fires like Yellowstone, 1988;
4. Clarification of fire policies concerning when to implement aggressive initial attack;
5. Fire leadership adequate training;
6. “Hot” fire reviews and more accountability;
7. Pursue adequate fire suppression funding;
8. Ensure all USFS employees have a role in fire emergencies;
9. Develop more leadership succession planning to replace experienced retirees;
10. Streamline environmental planning and reduce legislative conflicts.

For years I have felt, personally and professionally that our public lands have become tied down in bureaucracy and unnecessary legislative silliness and environmental radicalism. I see this report from an esteemed membership as encouragement for a better future for our public lands -- if someone listens.

Read the whole report here: http://www.delalbright.com/nafsr position paper.pdf

Del

Del Albright

Director of Operations, BlueRibbon Coalition www.sharetrails.org
Founding Trail Boss, Friends of the Rubicon www.rubiconfriends.com
Environmental Affairs, CA4WDC www.cal4wheel.com

 

[craig333]

More controlled burns definitely but I'm far from convinced they've learned how to do it properly. I know a few communities in N.Cal from my time with CDF that wouldn't be anxious to have the FS do another uncontrolled controlled burn in their community.

 

[jeepndel]

More controlled burns definitely but I'm far from convinced they've learned how to do it properly. I know a few communities in N.Cal from my time with CDF that wouldn't be anxious to have the FS do another uncontrolled controlled burn in their community.

Yes, craig333, I hear ya. There are a lot of good, professional folks on the ground in the USFS and BLM; but ground troops are many times overly hampered by big time politics from higher level staff who are under some sort of political gun.

 

[Toyotero]

IMO, these are the most important two items (assuming they have a functional bureaucracy and enough staffing)

2. Reduced fuel loading and more prescribed fire;
3. Review and learning from past big fires like Yellowstone, 1988;

I remember reading about what was learned about managing the forests after the Yellowstone fire of 88, primarily that occasional fires (1 per 10 or 20 years) were the natural norm for thousands of years, so much so that the organisms of the forest adapted to survive or even depend on them... an example is the Pitch Pine has cones that don't open and release their seeds unless they are baked in a fire... after which the seeds fall to the ground that is free of grass and cover and full of rich ash. This has a bit of info on that... http://njforestry.org/files/FN2-05-2011 Pitch Pine-Mark.pdf

The big mistake made for about 100 years in Yellowstone is that every fire was put out as fast as possible, and the clutter of dead trees/branches/etc grew and grew like a giant tinder pile that once it was ignited was very hard to extinguish... and worse, it burned much much hotter than a quick burn of grass and the occasional dead trees, so hot that it killed trees and fried pine cones that would have survived the occasional fire once per decade.


The challenge seems to have been incorporating this understanding into functional management policies and practices such as large controlled burns.


Btw, this conversations reminds me of this funny email signature I saw a few years ago... "A bristlecone pine is just a fire's way of making another fire."

 

[peneumbra]

Plastic trees. It's the only answer...

Seriously, they (BLM and USFS) are finally start to "get" that letting things burn on occasion can be very beneficial. But there's going to have to be some kind of moratorium on building in interface zones at some point, and good luck with that...

 

[Dave Bennett]

Interesting. Thanks for sharing.