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Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy
Northeast Region
A firefighter from Plymouth, MA, uses a drip torch to ignite grasses in a prescribed fire.
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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December 2016
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FY 2017 Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry Cohesive Strategy Request for Proposals Available
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The Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry (NA S&PF) Cohesive Fire Strategy Competitive Request for Proposals is designed to support and carry out the goals of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy across the Midwestern and Northeastern States as well as meet the intent of the current year budget direction.
Proposals will be accepted that clearly identify the reduction of wildfire risk and/or improve wildfire response in coordination with their respective State's Forest Action Plan and meet one or more of the nine Northeast Regional Action Plan management options.
To simplify this process for FY 2017, NA S&PF has combined the State Fire Assistance-funded competitive processes into one application. Proposals are due
close of business January 17, 2017.
View details and useful resources for this RFP opportunity.
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Prescribed Burns Improve Safety, Restore Ecosystem
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November 15, 2016
The Times
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Jenny Orsburn starts small fires along Furnessville Road as part a prescribed burn at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. (Photo: John J. Watkins Photos, The Times)
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Large plumes of gray smoke crept over parts of northern Porter County on Thursday signaling the start of an annual ritual at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore
--- the prescribed fire.
It's a tactic used by the National Park Service to improve safety in the park and to maintain the ecosystem.
The National Park Service is planning six prescribed fires this fall at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore encompassing about 850 acres.
Micah Bell, fire prevention and education specialist for the IDNL, said the controlled burns are essential to restoring the land.
"Before man was here, nature would have produced fire on (Dunes land) at fairly regular intervals," Bell said. "Now with people in the area we don't allow fires to be started."
"The prescribed fires mimic what Mother Nature used to do," he said.
In fact, the ecosystem depends on it.
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Fire's a Tool in Local Conservation Efforts
LOCKPORT: Western New York Land Conservancy Sets "Prescribed Burn"
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Staff Reports
November 25, 2016
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A view of the Niagara Escarpment Preserve's prescribed burn, overseen by an employee of Applied Ecological Services, a company specializing in the technique called "burn plans." (Photo courtesy of the Western New York Land Conservancy)
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Earlier this month a fire struck some of the Western New York Land Conservancy's 29-acre nature preserve in Lockport.
But it was the non-profit land owners who set the blaze in the area's 10-acres of grassland, working to safeguard one of the area's historical sites and largest stretches of uninterrupted shoreline along the Niagara Escarpment. It's what officials at the organization call a "prescribed burn."
It is the first such use of the technique in Niagara County, according to officials at the conservancy.
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More than 80 Wildfire Personnel from MNICS Deployed to Southeastern Wild Fires
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November 19, 2016
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Minnesota DNR firefighters headed to the Boteler Fire (in the yellow truck). (Submitted photo).
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The Minnesota Interagency Fire Center, based in Grand Rapids, has dispatched more than 80 personnel to fires during the past couple of weeks to 13 states in the southern part of the nation as heavy fire behavior continues.
"We try to help other states when their fire suppression resources are tapped," explained MIFC Public Information Officer Christi Powers. "Typically, you do not see this type of fire activity in the southeastern region during this time of year but dry, windy and warm conditions have increased potential for nearly 80 ongoing fires particularly in North Carolina, which declared a state of emergency Wednesday, and is dealing with severe drought."
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"N.H. Firefighters Help Combat Wildfires in Drought-Stricken Georgia"
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The drought that gripped the South this fall led to many large wildfires that have scorched more than 1.4 million acres so far this year, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Firefighters from around the country have pitched in to help battle these wildfires.
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Cohesive Strategy FEMA Grants Final Report and Action Plan Released
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 Transmitted Message from U.S. Fire Administrator Ernest Mitchell
It gives me great pleasure to transmit the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy Critical Success Factor --- FEMA Grants Final Report and Action Plan. As you know, the U.S. Fire Administration was tasked as the lead for this effort to address leveraging FEMA grants in an effort to maximize community wildfire mitigation.
 This final report and action plan are a culmination of input from representatives from multiple agencies and organizations across the country.
Task recommendations are identified in four categories:
- Awareness, Education, and Outreach
- Grant Policy and Guidance Development
- Grant Processes
- Research Considerations
I hope you will find this report and action plan a valuable resource. Together we can restore and maintain landscapes, create fire-adapted communities, and achieve safe and effective wildfire response!
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History of Fire Management at Camp Edwards: Lessons, Challenges, and Future Objectives
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Register NOW for the next North Atlantic Fire Science Exchange (NAFSE) Field Trip on January 19, 2017, from 7:30 am to 3:30 pm EST. For security reasons, you MUST register for this
field trip no later than December 28, 2016.
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Photo by Joel Carlson
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This
field trip will be offered by the
North Atlantic Fire Science Exchange in conjunction with the
Massachusetts Coastal Pine Barrens Partnership. Camp Edwards is 15,000 acres of Army National Guard training lands within the 22,000-acre Joint Base Cape Cod and is home to the largest contiguous pitch pine barren forest outside of the New Jersey Pinelands. This field trip will introduce participants to the 25+ year history of fire management, the challenges of management objectives on a military base surrounded by towns, and the successes of management activities within the context of the Pine Barrens ecosystem. Here is the
virtual field trip map with descriptions and photos of potential sites we will visit!
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Learn the Science of Home Survival from Wildfire and NFPA Training
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November 4, 2016
A recent
NFPA training [session] in Maine helped fire service and forestry professionals from New England and Canada learn the science behind how homes ignite from wildfire. More importantly, students learned what they can do to advise property owners about actions that will help prevent ignition and reduce the chances of home destruction during a brush or forest fire.
This interactive training covers characteristics of wildfire and wildland-urban fire, providing the scientific background on home ignition developed through years of experimental research and post-disaster findings. Once students were immersed in fire physics and home vulnerabilities in the classroom, instructor Pat Durland took them to several sites selected by Maine forestry staff to take a look at real homes on real landscapes to assess their ignition potential.
According to training host and Maine forester Kent Nelson, Pat Durland's instruction "provided a lot of easy fixes from roof to foundation to make homes safer from embers and radiant heat." Most importantly, the training provides participants with the confidence and knowledge to make sound recommendations to property owners about how to protect their most important asset - their home.
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Safety Video Released: Pagami Creek Fire Entrapments
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 Larry Mastic
November 21, 2016
Even though this incident on the Pagami Creek Fire within the Superior National Forest in Minnesota occurred over 5 years ago in 2011, there are important lessons for firefighters in the Northeast to study in this recent
video. Agencies might wish to consider using this
video and the
facilitated learning analysis report as part of their safety trainings in the upcoming year.
This video was produced by the U.S. Forest Service Missoula Technology and Development Center (MTDC) and recently published via the
Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center web site.
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Pagami Creek Fire, 2011. (Photo: U.S. Forest Service)
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Conferences, Meetings, and Training Opportunities
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Duluth, MN
Nominations Due: December 9, 2016
Conferences and Meetings
--Regional--
January 31, 2017
University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point
Stevens Point, WI
Fort Custer National Training Center
Augusta, MI
March 7-8, 2017
Nashville, IN
--National--
Private Landscapes, Public Responsibilities
February 5-8, 2017
Lincoln, NE
Preconference March 18-21, 2017
Conference March 21-23, 2017
Peppermill Resort
Reno, NV
All Hands, All Lands: Implementation Rooted in Science
April 25-27, 2017 [in planning]
Reno, NV
June 4-7, 2017
Boston, MA
Save the Date!
Northeast Forest Fire Supervisors Annual Meeting
June 19-23, 2017
Hanover, MD
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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