Due to our nation___s long list of current economic problems, our political leaders are working overtime to restore overall stability. But just what are our Congressional leaders doing to make things better? Below, I highlight a few of the activities occurring in Washington, D.C. that relate specifically to wildland/urban interface (WUI) and wildland fire.

 

2009 Economic Stimulus Plan

The economic stimulus plan approved by Congress in February paved the way for hundreds of millions of dollars earmarked for fire stations and WUI and wildfire management projects across the nation. This includes:

__ $500 million, which will remain available until Sept. 30, 2010, for grants for modifying, upgrading or constructing state and local fire stations.

__ $15 million for wildland fire management programs nationally, also available until Sept. 30, 2010.

__ An additional $485 million, to remain available until Sept. 30, 2010, for hazardous fuels reduction and hazard mitigation activities in areas at high risk of catastrophic wildfire, of which $260 million is available for work on state and private lands using all the authorities available to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS).

 

Fire-Safe Communities Act

A new 2009 Fire-Safe Communities Act is currently in the works. This bill was proposed in a previous session of Congress, but was never passed. Congressional sessions last 2 years, and at the end of each session, all proposed bills and resolutions that haven___t passed are cleared from the books. Members often reintroduce bills that didn___t come up for debate under a new number in the next session.

Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) is now working on the Fire-Safe Communities Act of 2009. The bill defines a ___fire-safe community___ as a subdivision of a state that has adopted a national WUI fire code, or a municipality at risk (a subdivision in a fire-prone area) that has adopted local ordinances consistent with national WUI codes and that the Under Secretary determines is provided generally accepted levels of fire protection.

For at-risk municipalities, the 2009 revision authorizes the FEMA administrator to modify the requirements of the Fire Management Assistance Grant Program related to the provision of a non-federal share of funds, so that if such a municipality has adopted an applicable ordinance and is making significant progress toward implementing it, the Administrator may reduce the required non-federal share to 10 percent of the grant amount.

Feinstein___s bill directs the FEMA administrator to provide grants to: 1) at-risk municipalities to encourage responsible development in state-identified fire-prone regions and to mitigate the catastrophic effects of fires; and 2) states to create or update fire-hazard assessment maps. It also expands the purpose of the Community and Private Land Fire Assistance Program to include enhancing the capability of local governments to integrate fire-resistant community and home design into local planning, zoning, building code and brush clearing ordinances. Finally, it authorizes a pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability of providing assistance to fire-safe communities located near federal land.

 

Time for a New Report?

A new ___call to action___ proposal created by a small cadre of federal, state and local wildland fire agency leaders (called the Emmittsburg 13) is meant to stimulate presidential, congressional and gubernatorial leadership on what it will take to collectively fix our wildland and WUI fire problems.

The group is considering the idea of a new report on wildland fire. Just as the report ___America Burning___ (www.fire.nist.gov/bfrlpubs/fire73/art004.html) solidified, and still continues to coalesce, efforts around structural fire protection, this group believes there___s a need for an ___America___s Wildlands Burning___ report. The group says such a report will set the stage for collaboratively developing principles, strategic direction and a framework for roles and responsibilities for federal, state, tribal and local agencies and individuals___all of which will help us, as a nation, better manage and live with wildland fire.

The group also believes that a collectively crafted and owned vision is the best way for the many varied interests to work cooperatively. However, opponents say we already have far too many groups overlapping efforts and a long list of reports that say the same thing. This issue will continue to be debated in the coming months.

 

Coalition Calls for Funds

In April, a coalition of more than 120 national organizations sent letters to the President and key members of Congress regarding the upward trend in fire suppression funding costs that increasingly prevents the USFS and the Department of the Interior (DOI) land management agencies from implementing critical programs and fulfilling their missions.

The Fire Suppression Funding Solutions Coalition (FSFSC) believes Congress must identify a new mechanism for funding emergency fire suppression activities. Specifically, the group believes that any legislation proposing a real and lasting solution for the funding crisis currently facing federal land management agencies should require both cost containment and the investment of funds into agency programs that have been impacted by increasing costs.

Further, the USFS and the DOI must continue developing and implementing a rigorous set of measures for linking fire management to fire costs in order to more effectively achieve cost-containment.

As part of those measures, the FSFSC recommends creating a partitioned wildfire suppression account to fund emergency fires. But the creation of this separate account must adhere to the following rules:

1. Non-emergency agency budgets (USFS and DOI) shall not be impacted by emergency fire spending; and
2. The 10-year rolling average must be replaced with a more predictive statistical modeling approach that utilizes current weather, drought, fuel load, fire history and other data to project the extent of wildland fire on the landscape, as well as economic modeling to predict the funding needed to address it.

 

Goodbye, DOA_____Hello, DOI

In what looks to be a major bureaucratic turf war, there are rumblings on Capitol Hill about moving the USFS from the Department of Agriculture (DOA) to the DOI.

For more than a century, the USFS has managed the national forests and has been part of the DOA, while the nation___s four other public lands agencies___the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the National Park Service___have been part of the DOI. Together, these agencies manage more than 680 million acres of forests, rangelands, wetlands, parks and wilderness.

Supporters say moving the USFS to the DOI makes sense because the agencies face similar problems such as climate change, the pressures of urbanization and wildfires, as well as the WUI fire issue.

Critics say the move wouldn___t save much money, at least initially, and it could leave the USFS more vulnerable to political pressure.
For more information, visit www.gao.gov/new.items/d09223.pdf.

 

IBHS Paper Released

In April, the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) released a white paper to underscore the importance of considering vulnerable populations___including the poor, the elderly, the disabled, non-English speakers and others needing special assistance___in disaster planning and property loss-prevention initiatives in high-risk areas.

The paper, entitled ___The Importance of Reducing Disaster-Related Losses for Vulnerable Populations,___ cites data from numerous studies to support the need to do more to protect these citizens, who often live in the most vulnerable housing and lack resources to make vital evacuation plans or undertake loss-reduction measures.

Two examples: Nearly 150 apartment complexes, home to more than 93,000 renters in Houston___s blighted neighborhoods, were severely damaged in 2008 by Hurricane Ike. Also last year, California wildfires left hundreds of mobile home park residents instantly homeless.

The Fortified Program is cited in the paper as an affordable solution for encouraging disaster-resistant construction, noting that more than a dozen Habitat for Humanity homes in several states have been built to this standard. The program___s criteria exceeds building codes to make homes more durable and ensure they can provide a secure home to families for years to come.

IBHS also recommends that federal and state loss mitigation grant programs recognize the immense needs and limited resources that vulnerable populations have, noting that many may live in housing owned, managed and maintained by government entities.

Beyond limiting the displacement of vulnerable populations and sustaining affordable housing, investing public funds in hazard mitigation programs also will create economic activity, minimize property damage, and reduce the cost of response and recovery, according to IBHS.__

To read ___The Importance of Reducing Disaster-Related Losses for Vulnerable Populations,___ visit the IBHS Web site, www.DisasterSafety.org.

 

 

For More Information__

For insight into what the Obama administration is doing in terms of reviews and analysis of federal programs, check out the ___Overview of Wildland Fire Organizations___ (www.nwcg.gov/nwfea/references/wf-orgs-mission..pdf).

This report provides an overview of current federal councils, groups and committees established by the Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Department of Interior (DOI) to better coordinate wildland fire programs nationally.

 

 

Free Webinars Offered

From the nation___s capitol, the International Code Council (ICC) is launching a series of free overview webinars on the 2009 I-Codes, information that___s particularly valuable to those in the industry who face tight budgets that restrict or eliminate training and travel expenditures.

Each webinar runs almost a full hour and provides an overview of each code, as well as the most significant changes between the 2009 and 2006 editions of the codes. The 2009 International Building, Residential, Fire, Wildland/Urban Interface, Plumbing, Mechanical and Fuel Gas Codes are also included.

To register and learn more about the free 2009 I-Code webinars, visit www.iccsafe.org/09free. The webinars are available online 24/7.