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Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy
Northeast Region
Pagami Creek Fire, Superior NF, Minnesota, September 2011. (Photo: Kari Greer)
Resilient Landscapes - Fire-Adapted Communities - Safe and Effective Wildfire Response
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The Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC) provides executive leadership, coordination, and guidance to carry out the Northeast Regional Action Plan while providing a forum for members to guide strategic direction for fire and land management activities. The NE RSC continues to collaboratively recognize, support, and help with National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy goals and implementation efforts.
Brad Simpkins, New Hampshire State Forester
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Northeast Region Cohesive Strategy Key Contacts
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Chair Chief Fire Warden Mass. Dept. of Conservation and Recreation Maureen Brooks Vice-Chair U.S. Forest Service Northeastern Area S&PF Larry Mastic Coordinator, Northeast Region Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy |
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Forest Fire Compacts
Quick Links
Science and Joint Fire Science Consortiums & Exchanges
Social Media
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April 2017
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Pine Barrens Prescribed Fires: A Renewal Force
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Pillars of smoke could be seen reaching high into the sky from this week's Pine Barrens fire, which burned about 1,000 acres of the Franklin Parker Preserve in Burlington County.
The blaze was not an accident, the result of a lightning strike, a cigarette tossed from a car window or a campfire gone awry. Rather, it was a "controlled burn," or prescribed burn, performed under exacting conditions of temperature, humidity and wind by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, in cooperation with New Jersey Conservation Foundation. A similar controlled burn scorched 800 acres of the same preserve two weeks earlier.
While 1,800 acres of charred forest in a nature preserve may sound like an ecological catastrophe, it's actually just the opposite. Fire is an essential ingredient in making and keeping the Pine Barrens what they have been for thousands of years.
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Green Before Spring May Be a Bad Thing
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Posted April 4, 2017
By Patty Gillespie
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Jim Gillespie, Sam Parr State Park, Fish and Wildlife Area's site superintendent, stands in a woodland section burned in February. He is holding a honeysuckle sprout, revealing an extensive shallow root system. (Photo: Patty Gillespie)
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In March and sometimes in early April, the high-quality native deciduous woodlands of Illinois still look a bit wintery. Tree trunks are shades of gray and the leaves on the forest floor are variations of brown. True, buds are preparing to unfurl their leaves and wildflowers are emerging, but a springtime woods is not vibrant green, unless its understory is populated by the highly invasive exotic plant, bush honeysuckle. A green leafy woodland understory appearing before spring is not a good thing.
Read the full "Green Before Spring" article.
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Webinar Focuses on Fire Departments' Response Capabilities to Wildfires
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 Blog Post by Lisa Marie Sinatra
March 1, 2017
More U.S. municipal fire departments are being called upon to respond to wildfire incidents. Is your fire department one of them? Do they have the capability to handle these unusually challenging events? A recent webinar discusses the findings in a newly released NFPA study that addresses wildfire preparedness in local fire departments.
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Official: Training Pays Off in Bartlesville Wildfire
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Posted March 29, 2017
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Red slurry coats a Washington County Fire Department Brush Truck after retardant drops were used by aircraft to slow advance of the Hoppick Fire. (Photo: Oklahoma State Forestry Services)
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For the past three years, Oklahoma Forestry Services, in cooperation with Oklahoma State University
--- Fire Service Training, has provided wildland firefighting training to fire departments across the state. This training prepares firefighters, who may be more accustomed to fighting structure fires, to safely and efficiently conduct initial attack on wildfire incidents. While Oklahoma Forestry Services is the lead agency for wildfire suppression in the state, it is local fire departments that are the first line of defense in their communities and will likely be first to respond to any wildland fire in their area.
This training paid off in a big way last week when the Washington County Fire Department fought the Hoppick Fire, a large wildfire that threatened multiple structures near Bartlesville. The fire was well established when Washington County Fire arrived on scene. The abundance of dry fine fuels, high temperatures, low humidity and windy conditions meant the Hoppick Fire could go big. Applying the tactics they learned in the Oklahoma Forestry Services training, Washington County Fire Department crews were able to prevent the loss of homes and hold the fire at 544 acres.
Read the full Bartlesville wildfire article.
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(Photo: Screenshot from International Association of Fire Chiefs' web site)
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This year's WUI Conference, an annual event hosted by the
International Association of Fire Chiefs, started on a somber note, with a moment of silence to remember Christina Randall (wildfire mitigation administrator for the Colorado Springs Fire Department who had recently died) and other fallen firefighters.
FAC Net has been at the WUI Conference every year since the network launched in 2013. It's always a great opportunity to meet new fire adapted communities (FAC) practitioners, network with partners, and catch up with
members. A significant portion of the agenda is typically devoted to FAC, so it's also a good opportunity for our members to learn about new initiatives, as well as share what they are doing and learning with hundreds of career firefighters, agency staff and other wildland fire professionals from across the country.
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Bioenergy Supports Rural Jobs, Minimizes Wildfires
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Joyce El Kouarti, U.S. Forest Service
March 23, 2017
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Woody debris left from the Rim Fire on the Stanislaus National Forest could add power to the grid.
(Photo: Keith Riggs, USDA Forest Service)
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What if there was an endless fuel source that came from widely available natural waste products? And what if converting these products to energy supported tens of thousands of rural jobs?
Wood can be just that fuel. In many places, it already is.
The U.S. Forest Service is working to expand renewable wood energy markets by providing technical assistance and grants to public and private sector partners through its
Woody Biomass Utilization program. By supporting efforts to reuse the excess wood from forest thinnings, urban tree trimmings, and forest products manufacturing facilities as well as trees killed by fires, insects, disease, and hurricanes, the agency seeks to increase the amount of locally-produced energy while improving forest health and resilience.
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National Wildfire Community Preparedness Day
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Conferences, Meetings, and Training Opportunities
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--Regional--
May 3-4, 2017
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Upton, New York
Save the Date!
Northeast Forest Fire Supervisors Annual Meeting
June 19-23, 2017
Hanover, MD
--National--
All Hands, All Lands: Implementation Rooted in Science
April 25-27, 2017
Reno, NV
June 4-7, 2017
Boston, MA
June 26-29, 2017
Hosted by the Yakama Nation at the Yakima Convention Center
FireVision 20/20: A 20-Year Reflection and Look into the Future
7th International Fire Ecology & Management Congress
Held concurrently with the 2nd Applied Fire Science Workshop
Hosted by the Association for Fire Ecology in cooperation with the Southern Fire Exchange
November 28 - December 2, 2017
Orlando, FL
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The Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC) delivers articles and stories each month that demonstrate the collaborative efforts of agencies, organizations and communities supporting and promoting the three goals of the Cohesive Strategy: Restoring Resilient Landscapes, Creating Fire Adapted Communities and Responding to Wildfire.
This news update is our primary communication tool with our partners and the public. Looking for more Northeast Region Cohesive Strategy information or past published news update issues? Visit this Web site.
Does your agency, organization, or community have a project or event you'd like to see featured in the NE RSC News Update?
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