Prescribed Fire Councils
Links:
California Prescribed Burn Association
Northern Prescribed Fire Council
Southern Sierra Prescribed Fire Council
Butte County Prescribed Burn Association
Yuba-Bear Burn Cooperative (YBBC)
Training Exchanges -- Prescribed Fire Training Exchanges
For the most current information about TREX programs visit the TREX site hosted by The Nature Conservancy.
Read about Prescribed Burn Associations in the June 2019 issue of The Sierra Voice.
October, 2014
The Forest Service seeks to increase the pace and scale of fire restoration to return forest and woodlands to a resilient condition. In order to increase the pace and scale of treatments, we must also develop the capacity to use fire safely and effectively. As training exchanges are becoming more popular in the western United States, it is clear that increasing cooperation and coordination is essential in creating robust fire programs. Training exchanges provide high quality training opportunities that support partnership development among diverse fire practitioners and increased capacity through cooperation.
The Northern California Prescribed Fire Council is hosting two prescribed fire-training events this coming fall. Northern California - October 13-26, 2014 and Klamath River Prescribed Fire Training, Orleans, CA - October 1-11, 2014.
Last year, the trainees participated in a total of 17 prescribed burns and treated more than 450 acres in the Region. Click here for a TREX summary of last year. For more information on the following training exchanges contact Lenya Quinn-Davidson.
Save the date: November 5-6, 2013 Inaugural Meeting for the Southern Sierra Prescribed Fire Council
The Southern Sierra Prescribed Fire Council is pleased to announce its Inaugural Meeting on November 5-6th at the Veteran's Memorial Building in Clovis, CA. This meeting will expand on the 2012 Fire and Smoke Symposium. We are seeking to create an open dialog for understanding fire and smoke policy and discuss coordination and training opportunities for increasing fire use and management in the Southern Sierra. Registration is now open and no registration fee is required. Visit the SSPFC webpage for more information on the council and to register for the meeting.
December 1, 2012 -- Southern Sierra Nevada Prescribed Fire Council adopts by-laws and forms steering committee
The Southern Sierra Nevada Prescribed Fire Council is shaping up, with new by-laws and a steering committee formed in the most recent meeting and adopted by this group. For over a year, in an effort to expand the influence of Prescribed Fire Councils to the Southern Sierra Nevada, Sierra Forest Legacy has engaged with multiple collaborators including the California Fire Science Consortium, Forest Service, National Park Service, Southern California Edison, Defenders of Wildlife, academic institutions, tribes, and local air quality management districts in the Southern Sierra Nevada. We are pleased to announce that all of our hard work has paid off with the formation of the Southern Sierra Nevada Prescribed Fire Council.
The mission of the Southern Sierra Nevada Prescribed Fire Council is to serve as a venue for fire practitioners, state and federal agencies, academic institutions, tribes, non-governmental organizations, coalitions, and interested individuals to work collaboratively to promote, protect, conserve, and expand the responsible use of prescribed fire and cultural fire in the southern Sierra Nevada’s fire-adapted landscapes. Furthermore, we would like to promote public understanding and acceptance on the ecological and cultural importance of burning in these fire-dependent landscapes.
So, who are we? The steering committee is a group of highly experienced and knowledgeable professionals that have dedicated their time and energy into the formation of the council.
Karina Silvas-Bellanca, Interim Chair
Sierra Forest Legacy
Tim Kline, Coordinator
California Fire Science Consortium Jared Dahl Aldern, Ph.D, Sponsored Associate Faculty, Humanities and Environmental Studies, Master of Arts Program, Prescott College, and Visiting Scholar of the West and Co-director of the Comparative Wests Project, Bill Lane Center for the American West, Stanford University
Mike Esposito, Assistant Forester/Resource Protection/Safety Team Leader and Fire Ecologist, Southern California Edison
Pamela Flick, Coordinator, Defenders of Wildlife
Robin Wills, Region Fire Ecologist Pacific West Region, National Park Service
Carolyn Ballard, District Fire Management Officer, High Sierra Ranger District Sierra National Forest
Daniel Martinez, Supervisor Air Quality Inspector, San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District
Lenya Quinn-Davidson, Director Northern California Prescribed Fire Council
Trent Procter, Air Quality Program Manager for the Pacific Southwest Region 5
Jon Becknell, Air Quality Specialist, Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District
The bylaws for the new council can be downloaded here.
If you are interested in being engaged with our effort please contact
Karina Silvas-Bellanca – karina<AT>sierraforestlegacy.org or Tim Kline – tkline<AT>berkeley.edu
Download here: Prescribed Fire Council Fact Sheet
What are Prescribed Fire Councils?
Prescribed Fire Councils are collaborative groups of local and regional stakeholders who work together to increase the appropriate use of prescribed fire. Existing Prescribed Fire Councils have diverse memberships and include federal and state agencies, academic institutions, conservation-based organizations, private companies, landowners, and interested citizens. Prescribed Fire Councils play multiple roles based on local and regional needs. Some of these roles include planning and implementing prescribed fire, facilitating cooperation between agencies, and providing training opportunities for fire practitioners. Prescribed Fire Councils can also provide a forum for shared learning, a unified message for public outreach, and adaptive management in the art and science of prescribed fire.
What do Prescribed Fire Councils do?
The main objectives of Prescribed Fire Councils are to protect the right to burn and to increase the safety and responsible use of prescribed fire through:
- Focused attention on prescribed fire and needs of fire practitioners;
- Networking – learning and sharing;
- Coordination for planning, training, and implementation;
- Education and outreach at local and regional levels;
- Improving fire policy and regulations.
Get Involved
- In Northern California and the Northern Sierra Nevada (Tahoe National Forests to the Modoc National Forest), the Northern California Prescribed Fire Council has been educating and working towards the increased use of responsible prescribed fire. More information on the Northern California Council can be found at http://norcalrxfirecouncil.org.
- The Southern Sierra Nevada Prescribed Fire Council is in development. Following the Southern Sierra Prescribed Fire and Smoke Symposium on March 26-27, 2012, the need to continue fostering relationships and partnership for increasing ecological fire in the Sierra Nevada was apparent. To fill this need in the Southern Sierra Nevada, Sierra Forest Legacy together with the California Fire Science Consortium, USDA Forest Service, National Park Service, Southern California Edison, tribes, local air pollution control districts, and academia started a discussion to move forward with the development of the Southern Sierra Nevada Prescribed Fire Council. We are working closely together to draft bylaws and form our steering committee. Our goal is to have the council developed by the end of the year. Please stay tuned for more information.
Learn more about the California Fire Science Consortium and Prescribed Fire Councils at these links.