Northeast Region Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy banner with a graphic of the 20 states of the Northeast and Midwest and National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy logo.
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
In This Issue
Northeast Region Cohesive Strategy Key Contacts

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

Important Links



Forest Fire Compacts





Quick Links


Science and Joint Fire Science Consortiums & Exchanges







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Top
November 2017

Faces of the Forest Service
USDA Forest Service banner.

A man wearing a hardhat and firefighting gear poses for a picture.
Nick Skowronski. (U.S. Forest Service photo)

Meet Nick Skowronski
 
October 23, 2017

It's been a record-setting year of wildfires, and researchers like Nick Skowronski are learning more than ever before about the dynamics of wildland fires. Skowronski was exposed to fire and fire management right out of college, and he has never looked back. Now a wildland fire research scientist with the  Northern Research Station in Morgantown, West Virginia, he continues to research and study wildfires.



Download a Free App about Wildfire Preparedness and Post Fire Recovery Today  
 
Blog post created by Faith Berry

October 12, 2017

Banner on a web page that states Be prepared for wildfire in your area. The Wildfire Preparedness in the Northeast app will help you prepare, plan, and respond to wildfire in your area.
(Photo of page from QuickSeries Publishing)
.
In honor of  Fire Prevention Week and thanks to the good work of the  Mid-Atlantic Forest Fire Protection Compact and the  Northeastern Forest Fire Protection Commission along with  QuickSeries Publishing, a free mobile app in both English and Spanish is now available to help people prepare for and recover from wildfire damages.

NFPA has partnered with the Compact and the Commission to ensure the app is available for free unlimited downloads for one year. This timely information, provided from the convenience of a smartphone or tablet device, can help people not only prepare their homes and families before a wildfire, but also provide critical knowledge and resources to help them recover more quickly after a fire has occurred.

While the app contains regionally specific information for the northeastern United States and eastern Canada, it is rich with information on wildfire preparedness and post-fire recovery that can help residents throughout North America. The settings feature within the app allows users to set the language to English or Spanish.

Read the entire blog post.

Facilitating Dialogue in Communities: Using the FAC Self-Assessment Tool
Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network logo.

A group of people sit at a table and look at papers while working together.
(Courtesy photo provided by the Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network)


October 3, 2017

"[This tool] determined the need for increased public outreach and a central contact during incidents. One year later, a new emergency manager independently reached the same conclusion. Synchronicity?"

Have you ever wondered if there is a "checklist" for becoming a fire adapted community? A lot of wildfire practitioners have. Because working toward wildfire resilience is a continuous effort and something that evolves, there is no single pathway that fits every community's needs. There is, however, a tool to help people working on fire adapted communities gauge their current efforts and identify future strategic opportunities.

What is the FAC SAT?
The  FAC Self-Assessment Tool (FAC SAT) is a tool that helps communities understand where they are in their fire adaptation journey, and identify priorities and potential actions. It aids communities in assessing their progress and tracking their capacity to live safely with wildfire over time. It can be used to assess individual neighborhoods, cities and even large counties.

Read the full FAC Self-Assessment Tool article .

Second Annual National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy Workshop
Head and shoulders picture of a man.
The International Association of Wildland Fire, in
International Association of Wildland Fire logo.
partnership with the Wildland Fire Leadership Council an d the Western, Southeast, and Northeast Regions of the Cohesive Strategy, invites you to join us at the 2nd Annual National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy Workshop to be held March 26-29, 2018, in Reno, NV.

The deadline to submit workshop session and presentation proposals has been extended to December 4, 2017.

Regular registration fee: $125 (Before March 1, 2018)
Regular registration fee: $175 (After March 1, 2018)

U.S. Forest Service Employees: Waived*
(*Note:  During the initial planning stages for this workshop, we received some incorrect information regarding how it fits within Meetings Management requirements. We have been made aware of the correct information and you will need to go through the Meetings Management process to gain approval to attend. If you would like to attend, please email Chris Farley to express your interest no later than December 1st. We apologize for this misinformation, we hope that everyone who is interested in moving this very important topic forward will be able to attend.)

Other agencies may also quality for waived registration; please contact us  for more information.

NFPA Launches Firewise Portal for Online Applications and Renewals
NFPA and Firewise USA logos.

In collaboration with the USDA Forest Service, the NFPA [National Fire Protection Association] is proud to launch our new Firewise USA™ online application and renewal system we've dubbed the Firewise Portal. This new portal brings the Firewise USA program™ fully online with a new and intuitive system that allows a collaborative place for potential Firewise sites to document and track their progress while they work towards becoming a nationally recognized Firewise program participant.

Screen shot of the Firewise portal.
Sample Firewise USA portal page.


Read the entire Firewise portal blog post.


DEC's Drone Program Takes Off
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation logo. Fleet of 22 Drones and Professional Operators Undertake Critical Search and Rescue, Forest Fires, Wildlife Management and Forest Health Missions

DEC Drones Dispatched to Assist in Hurricane Recovery Efforts in Texas and Puerto Rico

September 25, 2017

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced today that the agency has deployed a fleet of 22 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or "drones," across the state to enhance the state's environmental management, conservation and emergency response efforts.

Recently completed missions have greatly improved DEC's ability to monitor and protect the state's lands, waters, and wildlife while ensuring environmental quality and safety for residents.

"DEC has a wide range of responsibilities in protecting the state's environment and ensuring the safety of our citizens and visitors, and well-being of our communities," Commissioner Seggos said. "The use of drone technology will help us do our jobs better and faster while saving taxpayer dollars. We live in a changing world with technological advances being made at an exponential rate, and UAVs give us a safe and efficient way to collect and analyze data, assess threats to the environment, and quickly respond to emergencies. This technology is helping DEC with everything from petroleum spills and wildlife surveys to search and rescue missions, forest fires, and natural disasters."



Megan's Corner - November 2017
LANDFIRE logo and the text In the Northeast.
Three people pose for a picture with woods in the background.
Megan Sebasky, Randy Swaty, and Persephone Whelan at Huron-Manistee National Forest. (Courtesy photo provided by Megan Sebasky)

Here are some recent NE LANDFIRE highlights:
  • Randy Swaty (The Nature Conservancy) and I visited Persephone Whelan (West Zone Fire Management Officer) at the Huron-Manistee National Forest on October 31 to learn more about how they are tweaking LANDFIRE fuels data for their local use. I will be sharing that with all of you, as well as specific groups in the region interested in doing similar work. We may also host a workshop in the near future. Let me know if you are interested!
  • The fuels investigation is ongoing. I currently only have the spreadsheet I posted submitted from one agency in one state, but each submission will require a lot of followup work so I am happy with this progress. You will continue to hear about this in the future. The goal of this work is to provide LANDFIRE with data to produce dynamic fuels layers for the Northeast and Canadian fuels data for the Great Lakes Region, as well as for all of us to better understand fuel models and fire behavior in our region. The new datasets would not be created until after the entire Remap process, so we have a while to work through this.
  • I am working with LANDFIRE to assess the scope of a Remap prototype in the Northeast, at least for EVT, EVC, and EVH to start. The proposed area is a mapping tile that includes the eastern half of Pennsylvania and all of New Jersey. Stay tuned.
  • The U.S. Forest Service just published a fantastic news release on the exciting work being done in the Hiawatha National Forest that I've told you about, which relies on LANDFIRE data Biophysical Settings models.
NE LANDFIRE Contact: Megan.Sebasky@wisconsin.gov


Conferences, Meetings, and Training Opportunities

   

Conferences and Meetings

--Regional--

78th Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference
January 28-31, 2018
Milwaukee, WI

Igniting Exchange: Bridging the Gap between Science and Management
January 30 - February 1, 2018
Portland, ME

(Registration Now Open)
February 6-7, 2018 
Fort Custer National Training Center
Battle Creek, MI 


--National-- 
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

Wildland Urban Interface Conference
February 27 - March 1, 2018
Peppermill Resort
Reno, NV

2nd Annual National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy Workshop
Making a Difference; Building Capacity, Improving Preparedness, and Learning From Experience
March 26-29, 2018
Peppermill Resort Spa Casino
Reno, NV


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? 

 

Tell us about it! Just contact  Larry Mastic .
Northeastern Area State & Private Forestry | 603-953-3294 | rfitzhenry@fs.fed.us | https://www.na.fs.fed.us
11 Campus Blvd
Suite 200
Newtown Square, PA 19073