WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 031910

First up in wildfire news today, CAL FIRE is in discussions with Truckee Tahoe Airport District about using controlled burns to reduce wildfire danger in the area (1); while an Op-Ed piece from Oregon explores the future of biomass projects in that state (2). Nevada's State Forester is worried that a lack of wildfire funds combined with an abundance of vegetation growth could make this a challenging year (3). A downed power line sparked a wildfire near Loveland, Colorado's, water treatment plant (4); while Weld County is declaring victory (sort of) over USFS in regards to controlled burn authority over Pawnee National Grassland (5). Caldwell County officials are partnering with the Texas Forest Service to prepare for the inevitable arrival of the wildfire season (6); but a field fire in Wisconsin was the first reported this fire season in that state (7); and as Minnesota begins to thaw out, wildfire season is on the horizon (8). Another runaway debris fire in Pennsylvania was in the news, as officials reminded residents that it is wildfire season (9); even as firefighters battling a blaze in Northampton County were having difficulties reaching the fire on the ground, forcing them to appeal for help from aircraft (10). A pair of slash-pile burns in British Columbia that got out of control prompted one Canadian community to advance it's wildfire season by six weeks (11); and in the wake of those incidents, the province is considering deploying their air-tanker fleet a month ahead of the official start of wildfire season (12); this coming at a time where there is some fear that BC could face another bad fire season like last year's, which has sparked an angry debate over cuts to the wildfire budget (13). A blogger from the Caribbean island of St. Lucia commented on how many bushfires they have had in this unusually dry season (14); and China's northwest is on fire once again in Qinghai Province (15). A severe shortage of water is hampering wildfire fighting on the Philippine island of Cebu (16); and elsewhere in those islands, officials are advocating firebreaks in areas at high risk from wildfires (17). Malaysian authorities on the island of Borneo have tallied over 800 bushfire emergency calls so far this year (18); but the contentious issue of rampant forest fires in Indonesia will get another airing as the government considers UN-backed carbon-trading laws (19). Australian journalists who covered the Black Saturday bushfires walked away with a couple of prestigious Quill awards (20); but Victoria's Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) had another prescribed burn breach containment lines, this time at Wyperfeld National Park (21). And finally, a New Brunswick, Canada, community is putting a mule to use fighting wildfires, though it's probably not the kind of mule you're thinking of!

(1) Good or bad? Prescribed fire question topic of public forum next week in Truckee

(2) A bright future for Oregon biomass

(3) Thanks to winter rain, Southern Nevada could see more wildfires this summer

(4) Berthoud Fire crews help in wildfire west of Loveland

(5) Forest Service postpones prescribed burn at Pawnee grassland

(6) Commissioners eye participation in Wildfire Protection plan

(7) Firefighters called to field fire in Menomonie

(8) Spring burning restrictions to begin March 29

(9) Wildfire Danger Up

(10) Firefighters Battling Brush Fire

(11) Close calls cancel open burning in West Kelowna

(12) Early Wildfire Season

(13) Wildfire budget slashed $10M

(14) St. Lucia Update

(15) Forest fire breaks out in NW China's Qinghai, no one hurt

(16) Water Supply Woes Worsen

(17) Set up forest fire lines, provincial exec urges

(18) 800 emergency calls to put out bush, forest fire

(19) Indonesia to review forest carbon laws -official

(20) ABC journalists honoured for bushfires coverage

(21) DSE loses control of another burn

(22) New Maryland takes step to combat wildland fires