National Wildfire Management Cohesive Strategy
PARTNERS: USDA Forest Service Western Wildland Environmental Threat Assessment Center, USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station
SUMMARY: Major investments are being made throughout the United States in ongoing efforts to reduce human and ecological losses from catastrophic wildfire. Landscape scale changes in vegetation structure and fuel loadings are needed to significantly alter wildfire behavior, reduce wildfire losses, and achieve longer term fire resiliency. The most efficient way to achieve these long-term landscape goals remains unclear, and there are different perceptions on the relative role and effectiveness of management activities versus natural and managed wildfire to reduce fuels. In 2010, Congress passed legislation requiring the Federal agencies responsible for wildland fire management to work with states, tribes, and other interested stakeholders to develop a National Wildfire Management Cohesive Strategy to guide future management and wildland fire investments.
EFETAC's ROLE: EFETAC Director Danny C. Lee is serving as co-leader of the science team commissioned to provide scientific support to development of the Cohesive Strategy.
STATUS: New
PROGRESS: The science team has proposed using comparative risk assessments as the basis for evaluating strategic alternatives designed by regional teams of stakeholders and managers. A draft report of the science team describes the analytical framework and provides examples taken from recent work at national, regional, and local scales.
LINKS:
Western Wildland Environmental Threat Assessment Center
Rocky Mountain Research Station
CONTACT: Danny C. Lee, EFETAC Director, dclee@fs.fed.us or (828) 257-4854
Updated March 2011
