WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 102213

An Op-Ed piece points the finger at Congress for fueling the wildfires which are devastating western forests (1). Wildfire NOTD subscriber Scott Stephens, a Fire Ecologist at UC Berkeley, discusses the efficacy of using satellites to detect wildfires (2); the next article examining how wildfires in California and Oregon influence wildlife (3). An article from Arizona takes a closer look at how cuts to federal Hazardous Fuels Reduction Projects funding may increase the wildfire danger substantially (4); but Army investigators determined that Alaska's 87,000-acre Stuart Creek 2 wildfire outside of Fairbanks this summer was started by artillery practice (5). As Global Warming lengthens the dry season in South America's Amazon rainforests, wildfires are expected to take an increasing toll (6); the European Forest Fire Information System reporting two new wildfires: a 10-hectare blaze on the Italian island of Sardinia near Posada, and a 15-hectare blaze outside of Paionia, Greece (7). Fire officials cautioned residents of New Zealand about the bushfire hazard rubbish fires pose (8). In New South Wales, Australia, thousands of firefighters and nearly 100 aircraft grappled with 57 bushfires, 17 of which are still out of control (9); one firefighter who actually fell into a fire emerging unscathed (10); a photo spread showing scenes from the firelines (11); cooler temperatures and rain helping firefighters (12); the next article article providing a behind-the-scenes look at the Rural Fire Service Command Centre coordinating bushfire operations across the state (13); while the former Assistant Director of Emergency Management Australia weighs in on the need for a national plan for dealing with bushfires (14); and eucalyptus trees get their fair share of the blame as well (15); while climate change is also offered as a cause (16); the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change adding her voice to that debate (17); but an expert from the University of Wollongong says that even a tenfold increase in controlled burns would not be enough to diminish bushfire activity, with comments by Wildfire NOTD subscriber Richard Thornton, Research Director and Deputy CEO of Victoria-based Bushfire CRC (18); but the apprehension of two young arsonists shows that climate change is not the only thing sparking bushfires in NSW (19); the next item offering comprehensive information for people impacted by the bushfires (20); the toll bushfires are taking on wildlife being examined by a pair of articles (21)(22). And finally, a veterinary clinic that was destroyed in Colorado's Black Forest Fire has reopened!

(1) How our government fuels forest fires; Part 2

(2) Time Is Ripe for Fire Detection Satellite, Say Scientists

For the remainder of the stories in today's Wildfire News Of The Day, please subscribe to the Wildfire News Of The Day newsletter