Wildfire Wednesdays #53: Ready, Set, Go! NM - Collaboration to Prevent Wildfires

Hi Fireshed Members,

Wildfire season is off to an early start this year. Are you prepared for wildfire season? If not, take some time this week and to make a couple small actions toward wildfire preparedness. The Ready, Set, Go! guide in this week’s newsletter can help guide you in this process. Remember, we can make a bigger impact toward a wildfire adapted future by working together and following the slogan “each one, teach one.”

This week’s Wildfire Wednesdays features

• The New Mexico Ready, Set, Go! guide

• A brief and informative news article about the need for collaboration to prevent mega fires and the Rio Grande Water Fund

Best,

Gabe

New Mexico Ready, Set, Go!

In New Mexico, fire season is now a year-round reality in many areas, requiring firefighters and residents to be on heightened alert for the threat of wildfires. The tips in this Ready, Set, Go! Guide are designed to help you plan and prepare for a wildfire emergency.

This is a great general resource to help you, your friends, family, and neighbors start to make progress toward wildfire preparedness. When doing work around your house or planning for wildfire, talk to those in your community about what you are doing and why.

To get started on the Ready, Set, Go! Guidebook, click here.

Experts Urge Community Collaboration to Prevent Catastrophic Fires

This article in the Santa Fe New Mexican shares the insight of an expert panel on the importance of collaborative efforts in community fire adaptation work across the state. In addition, the author, Victoria Traxler, shares an introduction to the Rio Grande Water Fund for those that may not be familiar with this innovative approach to forest and watershed health in New Mexico.

The panel was hosted by the Nature Conservancy last week and included representatives of the national Fire Adapted Communities learning network as well as many others.

Be sure to give this article a read and consider sharing this perspective with those in your communities that may not be familiar with these efforts.

To read the article, click here.

Wildfire Wednesdays #51: Fire Prevention through Social Media - Post-Fire Restoration Recommendations

Hi Fireshed Members,

With severe drought conditions across the state of New Mexico, it is especially important for us to focus on reducing human-caused wildfire ignitions this year. Always check fire restrictions before you recreate, use spark arrestors on gas-powered equipment, and make sure to recreate responsibly this spring and summer.

This Wildfire Wednesdays features:

• Fire prevention messages to share on social media

• Post-fire Recovery through indigenous and western science-based knowledge systems

Best,

Gabe

Please Help us Prevent Wildfire! Use these social media posts!

Please help prevent wildfire by sharing these messages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or over email. If this simple step prevents one wildfire, it could save lives and will help keep our first responders safe during the 2021 fire season. Just add the flyer as a photo and use our suggested caption, or create one of your own.

Recreate Safely

Click Here to Download this Flyer!

Suggested Caption: Click Share and Help Prevent Wildfire: We all need your help to prevent wildfires this summer. The statewide average of human-caused wildfires in New Mexico is 48% of all wildfires and most of these fires can be prevented. Don’t drag chains, check spark arrestors on vehicles and equipment and for information about preventing wildfires over The Fourth of July weekend, visit https://nmfireinfo.com/   Suggested Hashtags: #recreateresponsibly #preventwildfire #nmfire #fireadaptednm

Know Before You Go

Click Here to Download this Flyer!

Suggested Caption: Click Share and Help Prevent Wildfire: Know Before You Go! Before you make plans to have any smores over the campfire check for current fire restrictions.  Campfires and fireworks are not allowed on most public and private land throughout New Mexico. For more information, call the Fire Restrictions Hotline: 1-877-864-6985 or visit https://firerestrictions.us/nm/ 

Suggested Hashtags: #recreateresponsibly #preventwildfire #nmfire #fireadaptednm 

Do Your Part, Don’t Let A Wildfire Start

Click Here to Download this Flyer!

Suggested Caption: Click Share and Help Prevent Wildfire: Firefighters and first responders are needed more than ever to keep America safe . Prevent wildfires by following fire restrictions, postponing debris burning, and using campfire alternatives.  

Suggested Hashtags: #recreateresponsibly #preventwildfire #nmfire #fireadaptednm 

Post-fire Management Recommendations: The Western Klamath Restoration Partnership

Has your community or landscape collaborative discussed post-fire restoration? If not, learn from the Western Klamath Restoration Partnership’s (WKRP) recent work on post fire restoration. While some of these recommendations may be locally-specific, there is a lot to learn on this document.

To access the WKRP’s post-fire recommendations, click here.

The April 2021 post-fire restoration recommendations from the Western Klamath Restoration Partnership are a great model of how to develop a plan through collaboration. WKRP is a diverse group of partners including tribal, federal, non-governmental organizations and community members. The WKRP’s planning area is cross-jurisdictional, and includes the Six Rivers and Klamath National Forests, State Responsibility Areas, and spans the Karuk Tribe’s Aboriginal Territory, totaling approximately 1.2 million acres. These best management practices for post-fire restoration are informed by both western science and indigenous knowledge, practice, and belief systems.

The document provides recommendations on the collaborative process in general, post-fire tree felling, fuels and fire restoration, erosion and sediment control, forest heterogeneity, and monitoring. If you are interested in broaching these subjects in your community or landscape collaborative, feel free to reach out the Fire Adapted New Mexico learning network for support by contacting gabe@forestguild.org.

Wildfire Wednesdays #50: Montana Wildfire Insurance Panel - Soil Moisture and Wildfire Danger

Hi Fireshed Members,  

Spring is windy in New Mexico. Be sure to check for red flag warnings before you burn debris or operate equipment that may create sparks. Red Flag warnings mean that warm temperatures, low humidities, and stronger winds are expected to combine to produce an increased risk of fire danger. There are currently red flag warnings across most of New Mexico.  

This Wildfire Wednesdays features:  

• A webinar about insurance industry professionals and wildfire mitigation 

• Using Soil Moisture Information to Better Understand and Predict Wildfire Danger 

Best,  

Gabe 

Insurance Industry and Wildfire Mitigation 

This panel discussion, followed by a public Q&A, covers how we can better align the efforts of community leaders and insurance providers in promoting and expanding wildfire risk reduction efforts. 

Carole Walker of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association moderated the panel, which featured Nicole Mahrt-Ganley of American Property Casualty Insurance Association, Daniel Gorham of IBHS, and Jason Fehr of Chubb Insurance. The panel was hosted by Fire Adapted Montana Learning Network and Missoula County Office of Emergency Management, and was made possible with funding provided by the Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network. 

For more information, and to view the recording, please click here. 

Using Soil Moisture Information to Better Understand and Predict Wildfire Danger: A Symposium for Researchers and Fire Managers 

This free online symposium will highlight the latest advances in using soil moisture information to better understand and predict wildfire danger. These recent discoveries are revealing the potential for soil moisture estimates from in situ monitoring stations, remote sensing, and models to improve fire danger predictions and to advance our understanding of fire behavior. 

This interactive symposium will provide researchers and fire managers a unique opportunity to connect with others, to learn about ongoing research in this area, and to discuss ways to move forward with new research and end uses. 

The symposium will run from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. CDT and from 1 p.m.-4 p.m. CDT on May 6, 2021. The event agenda, which will be posted shortly on Drought.gov, will feature invited talks, interactive breakout groups, and panel discussions.  

Registration is free. Click here to register by April 30, 2021. 

Invited Speakers: 

• John Bolten, Hydrological Sciences Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center 

• J. D. Carlson, Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, Oklahoma State University 

• Nicholas Coops, Forest Resources Management, University of British Columbia 

• W. Matt Jolly, Rocky Mountain Research Station Fire Sciences Laboratory, U.S. Forest Service 

• Brian Magi, Geography and Earth Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte 

• Brad Quayle, Geospatial Technology and Applications Center, U.S. Forest Service 

• J. T. Reager, Terrestrial Hydrology Group, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory 

• Angela Rigden, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University 

Sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey South Central Climate Adaptation Science Center, with additional programmatic support provided by the U.S. Forest Service, the National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network, and NIDIS. 

Organizing Committee: 

• Matthew Levi, Crop and Soil Sciences, University of Georgia (co-chair) 

• Tyson Ochsner, Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University (co-chair) 

• Stephanie Connolly, U.S. Forest Service, Office of Sustainability and Climate 

• Marina Skumanich, NOAA/NIDIS, National Coordinated Soil Moisture Monitoring Network 

For more information, please contact Matthew Levi (matthew.levi@uga.edu) or Tyson Ochsner (tyson.ochsner@okstate.edu). 

Wildfire Wednesdays #49: Land Use Planning - Reduce Home Risk - Smoke Preparedness

Hi Fireshed Members,

Spring is an important time for forest and fire managers to complete much-needed prescribed fire projects while weather conditions are favorable for low-severity fire. If you need information on a prescribed fire near you, or are interested in current fire restrictions, be sure to visit nmfireinfo.com.

This Wildfire Wednesdays features:

• Land Use Planning: Expanding the Wildfire Risk Reduction Toolkit

• Steps to reduce Wildfire Risk to your Home

• Smoke Preparedness Resources

Best,

Gabe

Land Use Planning Toolkit

Authors

Molly Mowery, AICP (Executive Director, CWPC)

Darrin Punchard, AICP, CFM (Principal, Punchard Consulting LLC)

The findings of a recent report illustrate that there are many opportunities within each state and across all four states to advance WUI risk reduction objectives through land use planning. Broad solutions synthesized from all four states focus primarily on state-level policy and funding activities:

• Adopt state legislation for minimum wildfire hazard planning requirements.

• Integrate the role of land use planning expertise in WUI initiatives.

• Promote learning opportunities to engage planners on WUI topics.

• Dedicate resources and funding to support risk reduction in the existing WUI.

• Identify and transfer land use planning practices from other hazards to wildfire.

It’s imperative to take action now on implementing these solutions. Western communities are increasingly facing trends and uncertainties that will continue to put pressure on the WUI—this includes accelerating impacts of climate change, population growth, and shifting land use patterns shaped by changing commuter patterns. Collectively, these factors could both expand the footprint of the WUI and increase the devastation of wildfires. Forward-thinking land use planning policies and regulations serve an important role in helping state and local governments address wildfire risk for communities today and those in the future.

To learn more about this research and access the Land Use Planning Toolkit by Molly Mowery, click here.

Steps to Reduce Wildfire Risk to your Home

No one thing reduces risk completely―the solution requires a system. Follow this series of steps to reduce your home’s risk.

Research has shown there are clear steps you can take to give your home a much better chance of surviving an encounter with wildfire. This guide produced by the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) provides four sets of steps that are grouped to provide the most impact for the time and cost involved. Get started today and be Wildfire Ready.

To see the steps that will give your home the best chance of survival, click here.

Smoke Preparedness Resources

If you were not able to join the Smoke Preparedness webinar with Ali Lerch last night, click here to see the recording. Through the 1-hour webinar we discussed the health effects of smoke exposure, differences between smoke from wildfire and prescribed fire, and some resources that you can use to prepare your home and family for wildfire smoke.

Some great resources for smoke preparedness including:

FACNM Smoke Resources Page: https://facnm.org/smoke

• Interactive smoke map

• General Smoke Information

• HEPA filter loan program

WAFAC Smoke Ready Page: https://www.fireadaptedwashington.org/toolkit/#Smoke-Ready-Toolkit

• Presentations in English and Spanish for communicating smoke readiness to others.

• Videos in English and Spanish for communicating smoke readiness to others.

Greater Flagstaff Forest Partners Smoke Resources: https://gffp.org/smoke/

• Resources to check air quality

• Information about the health risks and improving your health during wildfire smoke
  

Pacheco Canyon Prescribed Burn

Fire managers on the Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) took advantage of optimal conditions to conduct the Pacheco Canyon prescribed burn on the Española Ranger District this week.

The 550-acre prescribed burn is part of the larger Pacheco Canyon Forest Resiliency Project, a 2,042-acre forest restoration project that was instrumental in keeping the lightning-caused Medio Fire from crossing Forest Road (FR) 102 and threatening significant values at risk, including the Santa Fe ski basin and municipal watershed. The Pacheco Canyon treatment area along FR 102 helped firefighters contain the 2020 Medio Fire, at approximately 4,000 acres.

Each prescribed burn is designed to meet specific objectives and will be managed with firefighter and public safety as the first priority. The Pacheco Canyon prescribed burn, approximately 6 miles east of Tesuque Pueblo and 3 miles west of Ski Santa Fe, will protect communities by reducing the accumulation of hazardous fuels and decreasing the potential for severe wildfire.

Operations were successful. The Medio fire assured lines were held on the east side. On the west side, the fuels burnt as expected.  By late afternoon operations were complete on the east and west containment lines down to FR102. Firefighters finished mopping up by 7:30 pm on Easter day. Good fire was re-introduced to 547 acres.

Smoke management is a key part of the planning and implementation of prescribed burns. The SFNF manages prescribed fires in compliance with New Mexico state regulations on air quality and smoke management. Smoke-sensitive individuals and people with respiratory problems or heart disease are encouraged to take precautionary measures. Information on air quality and protecting your health can be found online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website. Information on the Forest Stewards Guild’s HEPA Filter Loan Program is available here.

 Photos courtesy of Tesuque Pueblo Environment and Natural Resources Department and the Forest Stewards Guild.