Dear NCFA Members, 

It has been brought to the attention of the North Carolina Forestry Association staff that some recent events such as Forestry Day in the Legislature and the Mid-Atlantic Biomass Expo have garnered attention in regard to their credible CFE hours.  As questions and concerns continue to arise the association feels that it is better to address these questions and concerns now, rather than continuing to foster confusion and uncertainty. 

The CFE process has effectively changed for the 2019 year, and thereafter. CFE accreditation will now be regulated and verified through the National Society of American Foresters (SAF). Ed Pomeroy is no longer the primary contact for North Carolina, the new contact is Hans Rhor with the North Carolina Forest Service. CFE credits were not marketed at either of the aforementioned events by the NCFA. We apologize for the confusion, but due to the recent changes coupled with past expectations, several members were unable to receive the CFE credits that they anticipated. Dr. John Hatcher, NCFA Executive Vice President, is currently working with SAF National to arrange credits for NCFA events in order to provide our membership with a more comprehensive overview of what NCFA events will be credited and how many CFE's will be offered for specific events. We appreciate your continued support and understanding as we work through this process. 

Sincerely, 

John Hatcher, Ph. D., Executive Vice President 

May 17, 2019

Fire seasons have lengthened so much that we now use the term "fire year", firefighting costs are breaking new records, and loss of life and property are part of an alarming new pattern. The ability to mitigate these impacts with community collaboration is critically important.

Several groups are taking a hard look at the rising costs of fighting wildfire versus the benefits of mitigation investments before the flames arrive. Studies like the  Tale of Two Fires  and  True Cost of Wildfires illustrate a cost-benefit ratio as high as $5 saved for every $1 spent on fuels treatments.

In recent years, several examples of community mitigation efforts have emerged to demonstrate the trade-off values of doing work before the fire, across property boundaries and within communities. One of these examples is the Timber Crater 6 fire  near Crater Lake, Oregon. A series of dry lightning storms passed through the Cascade Mountains in July 2018 and started the fire. The potential destructive path of this fire included over 20,000 acres of the Crater Lake recreation area, and several small, neighboring communities. But existing fuels treatments on federal and private lands helped fire managers prevent large-scale destruction and minimize the threat to the public. In the end, not a single structure was lost, and the fire was contained at 3,126 acres.

The key to community mitigation efforts is more than fuels treatments on federal lands. Collaborating with state cooperators, non-federal partners, and private citizens is where the true success of fire-adapted communities  begins. Many states provide homeowners with matching funds for defensible space projects and other fuel reduction efforts. The Forest Service, National Fire Protection Association , and the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety  provide a handy homeowner tip sheet  to prepare residents for the wind-blown embers responsible for destroying most homes regardless of surrounding fuels work.

In response to the 2015 wildfire season, the Forest Service created a Community Mitigation Assessment Team program to work with communities and partners who are motivated to address both the immediate home ignition zone and forested lands in surrounding areas.  CMAT teams help communities build sustainable local capacity for wildfire mitigation during high-risk times before, during or after a wildfire when awareness of the need for risk reduction and the likelihood of action is highest. CMAT works collaboratively with communities to build cross-boundary mitigation partnerships that focus on reducing risk strategically.

Lastly, since wildfire does not recognize property boundaries, the Forest Service has worked to create resilience within communities by providing training, information, and opportunities. Promoting Ecosystem Resilience and Fire Adapted Communities Together, or PERFACT, is addressing the country's wildfire problems head on by supporting the people who are creating change on the ground. This work empowers local people to navigate their own pathway toward a better relationship with fire.

This week, Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AR), the only forester in Congress, reintroduced his Resilient Federal Forests Act. The legislation attempts to expedite needed forest management projects on our nation's federal forest lands primarily through so called "categorical exclusions" from the National Environmental Policy Act or NEPA. Categorical exclusions or CEs essentially allow for limited environmental impact assessments for forest projects that are similar in scope to other projects that have already undergone extensive environmental reviews. Westerman's bill would extend CEs for projects up to 10,000 acres, particularly for those that are intended to reduce wildfire risk. The bill would also allow for voluntary arbitration as an alternative to lawsuits on forest management projects.

The Resilient Federal Forests Act passed the Republican-controlled House last Congress but languished in the Senate. Meaningful federal forest management reform provisions were included in the omnibus appropriations bill that was enacted in early 2018 and a couple more federal forest management provisions were added to the Farm Bill last year. While these new tools are very useful, the provisions in the Westerman bill would position the Forest Service to better deliver on its forest health objectives. Unfortunately, the Resilient Federal Forests Act is unlikely to move in the House this year. Democrat leadership has signaled that they prefer to focus more on the urban-wildland interface and preparedness efforts, rather than forest thinning/management to prevent wildfire.

   

In the Senate, Senators Steve Daines (R-MT) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) are reportedly working on a bill that would address federal forest management issues and authorize subsidies to promote biomass utilization around federal forests.