The Colorado Wildland Fire Conference is coming up on April 16 – 17. The conference is designed for community leaders, planners, and officials, and promises to be a very informative couple days. Register at www.wildfire-colorado.com
Category: Fire Mitigation
Udall urges that aircrafts be quickly refitted to fight wildfires
Mark Udall’s office recently published this press release:
Mark Udall, who has fought to strengthen Colorado’s ability to combat wildfires, urged the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Forest Service in letters today to swiftly repurpose military aircraft to help fight future wildfires in Colorado and across the West. Udall, who serves on both the U.S. Armed Services Committee and the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said these aircraft will help protect Colorado’s communities, water supplies and special way of life.
The excess military aircraft — seven U.S. Coast Guard-operated C-130Hs — were transferred to the Forest Service through provisions in the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act.
“We are in an era of modern mega-fires and my state has repeatedly broken records in recent years for the largest and most devastating fires in Colorado’s history. Projections for future fire seasons and the volume of hazardous fuels on the landscape make me extremely concerned,” Udall wrote in his letter to the Forest Service. “Air tankers cannot fight fire alone, but they are critical firefighting resources that can give firefighters time and prevent small blazes from becoming catastrophic wildfires. … I am requesting a report that describes the expected timeline for the completion of those transfers and an estimated date on which each C-130H will be employable as a firefighting asset, as well as their expected lifecycle and an analysis of what could possibly delay this timeline.”
To read Udall’s letter to the U.S. Air Force, click HERE.
To read Udall’s letter to the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Department of Agriculture, click HERE.
Udall has been the leading voice in Congress to update and strengthen the federal air tanker fleet, including through the transfer of excess military aircraft. He recently pressed the U.S. Forest Service to quickly adopt the Government Accountability Office’s recommendations on how to upgrade its air tanker fleet.
Udall has championed common-sense programs and strategies to prevent western wildfires. He recentlyintroduced bipartisan legislation to allow the Federal Emergency Management Agency to proactively work with states and localities on wildfire mitigation projects.
Mile High Youth Corps is Hiring
Mile High Youth Corps is hiring for their Land Conservation Program. This is a great opportunity for youth ages 18-24 interested in getting hands-on experience doing environmental conservation work. Find more information about Mile High Youth Corps at www.milehighyouthcorps.org and apply for jobs here.
Saw Camping & Day Corpsmember – Colorado Springs
Rampart Camping Trail Corpsmember – Colorado Springs
Rampart Saw Camping Corpsmember – Colorado Springs
Pueblo Day and Camping Corpsmember – Pueblo
Day and Camping Trail Corpsmember – Colorado Springs
Crew Mentor – Colorado Springs
Saw Camping & Day Corpsmember – Canon City
Saw Crew Leader – Colorado Springs
Saw Day Crew Corpsmember – Colorado Springs
Senior Crew Supervisor
Trail Crew Leader – Colorado Springs
New Funding Plan for Wildfires
The Obama administration is looking to shift how we pay for fighting wildfires by separating funds for prevention and funds for fighting wildfires. This funding structure would protect wildfire prevention funding from being used to fight wildfires.
Learn more in the Denver Post’s article Obama administration seeks new funding plan for wildfires
Houses Built to Fight Fires
Building fire-resistant homes and modifying existing homes with fire-resistant materials is becoming ever more important in the wildland-urban interface. The Wall Street Journal recently highlighted several families that have chosen to rebuild with fire-resistant materials after wildfires burned their homes. Take a look at these homes to get ideas for how to integrate fire-resistant materials in your home.
Houses Built to Fight Fires – The Wall Street Journal
Insurance & Wildfire
Creating defensible space and taking steps to reduce your wildfire risk is extremely important in the wildland-urban interface and can affect your home insurance. Check out the information on this topic provided in AAA’s EnCompass.
Pile Burning Schedule for 2/26 & 2/27 near Divide
The Coalition for the Upper South Platte’s fuels management crews are scheduled to pile burn on Wednesday, Feb 26 & Thursday, Feb 27.
Crews will begin burning piles located north of Divide within the Ute Lakes Fishing and Recreation Club. Burning will occur as weather and conditions allow throughout the next few months.
Smoke may be visible. Smoke-sensitive residents should consider staying indoors and keeping doors, windows and outside vents closed.
Fuels management staff will post road signs around the areas affected by the pile burns and send Nixel notifications. For more information please contact – cusp@uppersouthplatte.org, or call 719.748.0033
Radical approach to protecting wildland-urban interface
Faced with these dire circumstances, 20 of the West’s most influential wildfire experts gathered in Jackson Hole, Wyo., at a closed-door Wildfire Solutions Forum last month in an effort to generate radical ideas on how to lessen future fire danger in Western communities. The theme of the event centered on one question: How can we control the pace, scale and pattern of future development of the wildland-urban interface, or WUI? Across the West, 84 percent of this interface – where federal public land abuts private land within a 1/3-mile radius – remains undeveloped.
This “84 percent” was a rallying cry for the two-day forum, and symbolized a need to shift wildfire conversation away from the portion of WUI that is already developed. This is breakthrough thinking in the world of wildfire policy, where the priority has been to protect existing communities rather than venturing into the realm of future development.
Pile Burning Scheduled for 2/14 near Divide
The Coalition for the Upper South Platte’s fuels management crews are scheduled to pile burn on Friday, Feb 14.
Crews will begin burning piles located north of Divide within the Ute Lakes Fishing and Recreation Club. Burning will occur as weather and conditions allow throughout the next few months.
Smoke may be visible. Smoke-sensitive residents should consider staying indoors and keeping doors, windows and outside vents closed.
Fuels management staff will post road signs around the areas affected by the pile burns and send Nixel notifications. For more information please contact – cusp@uppersouthplatte.org, or call 719.748.0033
Importance of Mitigation
Why is wildfire mitigation so important? Check out the Colorado Springs Gazette’s conversation with two wildfire experts for their insights on the importance of wildfire mitigation in the wildland-urban interface and how the lessons from the Black Forest Fire can be used to help us better prepare for the next major wildfire.