WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 123011

US Forest Service and Texas Forest Service have teamed up to create fire breaks in neighborhoods around Sam Houston National Forest (1); while Wildfire NOTD subscriber Chuck Bushey, President of the International Association of Wildland Fire, sent along an article with the following comments:

Michael, below is an interesting recent media article concerning one major valley region in western Montana that has been very divided over the years in tackling WUI mapping. There are strong feelings on both sides of the issue and the politicians have decided to “take no action” rather than be decisive one direction or another. This whole valley was literally “on fire” during 2000 all the way down toward McCall, ID, where I was operating the Fire Behavior Service Center - Chuck (2).

The retiring Supervisor of Minnesota's Superior National Forest reflects on 15 years in that job, which included the massive wildfires that blazed through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness this summer (3). A wind-driven wildfire that has raced across Chile's Torres del Paine National Park has scorched 5,700 ha so far (4); and Sweden's Civil Contingencies Authority has compiled a list of top threats to that European nation, which includes forest fires (5). A new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences takes a look at the human impact on wildfires on the African continent (6); where young people in Ghana are being targeted by a bushfire prevention campaign (7). Despite a good deal of publicity, Fire Ready Victoria meetings were attended by only a score of Australians in December (8); while Western Australia has acquired the services of an Erickson Air Crane S-64 as part of a $12.8 million package of improvements to firefighting in that state (9). And finally, Tucson, Arizona, is locked in mortal combat with the US Department of Agriculture over repairs to a critical waterline damaged in this summer's wildfires!

(1) U.S. Forest Service working with Texas Forest Service to create fire breaks around neighborhoods

(2) County commissioners decline to act on WUI

(3) Retiring forestry service supervisor leaves legacy of strong stewardship

(4) Large forest fire razing Chilean National Park Forces Evacuations

(5) Disasters, disease top list of threats to Sweden

(6) Model unlocks human impact on Africa's fire regimes

(7) Youths of Nkoranza North District to prevent bushfires

(8) Information ahead of bushfire season

(9) Helicopter to aid WA firefighters

(10) The Town Too Tough to Die Sues the USA