New leadership council chair predicts wildfire gains

             

Asst. Secretary of the Interior Lynn Scarlett, recently selected as chairman of the Wildland Fire Leadership Council, reported that the National Fire Plan is helping alleviate dangers to public health and safety.

“Now in its third year of implementation, the National Fire Plan has made important strides toward reducing the impacts of catastrophic wildland fire to communities and the environment,” said Scarlett, who was appointed chair at the June 20 meeting of the Wildland Fire Leadership Council, which implements and coordinates the National Fire Plan and 10-year implementation plan. She succeeds Dale Bosworth, Chief of the Forest Service.

“Hazardous fuels have been reduced through increased firefighting resources and fuel treatment programs,” Scarlett reported. “State and local fire prevention and protection capability has grown dramatically with grants under the National Fire Plan totaling millions of dollars each year. Now the council is taking additional actions that will produce more gains in the battle against western fires.”

The Wildland Fire Leadership Council was established by a memorandum of understanding between the secretaries of Agriculture and Interior in April 2002. The council consists of members from federal wildland agencies, National Association of State Foresters, National Association of Counties, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Intertribal Timber Council and National Governors Association.

At its recent meeting, the council approved actions to continue implementing the National Fire Plan, such as cooperative budgeting and the establishment of broad, nationally compatible standards for identifying communities at risk, while allowing maximum flexibility at the state and regional levels.

Scarlett says the council's vision includes facilitating and streamlining the cooperative work under way among land and fire management agencies and communities: “What we call the ‘four Cs’ at the Interior Department — consultation, cooperation and communication needed to bring about conservation — are also needed to reduce the risk and devastating effects of wildland fire to property and natural resources.”