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Northeast Regional Strategy Committee Newsletter

July 2020


The purpose of the Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC) is to provide strategic oversight and participating organization (federal, state, local, non-profit) coordination to ensure policy coordination, cross-boundary communication, accountability, facilitate sharing of resources, and effective implementation of the Cohesive Strategy and related long-term strategies to address wildfire preparedness and suppression, hazardous fuels reduction, landscape restoration and rehabilitation of wildlands, and assistance to communities.
Table of Contents  
                     

Dave Celino Receives 2020 H. Alan Zentz Forest Fire Supervisors Award

 
June 18, 2020
 
At the virtual 2020 Northeast Forest Fire Supervisors Committee meeting held on June 18, 2020, Dave Celino, Chief Fire Warden for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (and current Chair of the Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC)), received the H. Alan Zentz Forest Fire Supervisors Award – presented by Lars Lund (VT), out-going Chair of the Northeast Forest Fire Supervisors Committee.
 
 
Dave Celino, Chief Fire Warden and NE RSC Chair speaking at the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Strategy Workshop field trip to Myles Standish State Forest near Plymouth, MA. October 2019.
 
The H. Alan Zentz Fire Supervisors’ Award
 
The NFFS Fire Supervisors’ Award is given annually to the person who has made significant contributions in the field of forest fire protection from within the 20 state geographic area.  This person may be from any fire control agency or organization within the 20 state area represented by the Northeast Forest Fire Supervisors.  
 
The H. Alan Zentz Fire Supervisors’ Award, was named to honor the life as well as the hard work and dedication of H. Alan Zentz for his commitment and contributions to the field of forest fire protection throughout his 35 year career. 

The award was supported unanimously by the Northeast State Fire Supervisors. The following is the full text of the nomination:
 
“Dave Celino became the Chief Fire Warden of the MA Bureau of Forest Fire Control in 2007 and a member of the Northeast Forest Fire Supervisors Committee.  Prior to working for the Commonwealth of MA he worked as a consulting forester in MA and served as a local fire chief. As soon as Dave attended his first NFFS meeting he became very active in the organization and was determined to actively participate in addressing regional and national fire management issues as well as improving the workings of the MA Bureau of Forest Fire Control.
 
In Massachusetts Dave has been instrumental in addressing and leading improvements in the application of prescribed fire across the state but especially in the fire prone pine barrens regions of the state as well as improving mitigation efforts in the widespread wildland urban interface areas across MA.  Prescribed fire accomplishments have significantly increased under Dave’s leadership.
 

News Release

Forest Service Chief announces new Regional Forester for Eastern Region


June 12, 2020 -

USDA Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen announced today the appointment of Gina Owens as Regional Forester for the Forest Service’s Eastern Region. As Regional Forester, Owens will oversee management of more than 12 million acres of the National Forest System spread across 17 national forests and one national tallgrass prairie in the Northeast and Midwest. Owens will continue to foster and maintain strong ties with 20 states and the District of Columbia as well as partners and private landowners to support state and private forest lands in a spirit of shared stewardship.

"Gina's diverse experience and leadership skills include an extensive understanding of both rural and urban communities' connection to public land," said Chief Christiansen. “She brings a well-rounded resource background, as well as extensive relationship and partnership abilities to the table that will be a tremendous asset to the region, our partners and the entire agency."

Owens is currently serving as the Deputy Regional Forester for the Forest Service's Pacific Northwest Region. Previously, she was the Forest Supervisor on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Beginning her career as a Forest Service volunteer in the Alaska Region, Owens has dedicated more than 30 years to the agency. Gina has held a variety of leadership and staff positions across the agency including in the agency national headquarters in Washington, D.C., Oregon, Washington, Montana, and in the Eastern Region, where she served as a District Ranger on the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests in Vermont. She has a degree in wildland recreation management from Washington State University.

“I am excited to work with the multitude of communities, partners, and employee perspectives, needs and opportunities the Eastern Region offers,” said Owens. “My goal is to build on the long-standing legacy of strong partnerships with state, tribal and local partners and maintain healthy, productive and sustainable forests through a spirit of shared stewardship.”

Owens is taking over the position left vacant in April 2019, when Kathleen Atkinson retired after serving six years as the Regional Forester for the Eastern Region. In the interim, Robert Lueckel has served as the acting Regional Forester and will return to his role as the Deputy Regional Forester for State and Private Forestry in the Region.

The mission of the USDA Forest Service is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages the 193 million acres of National Forest System land, provides stewardship assistance to non-federal forest landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world.

For more information about the U.S. Forest Service visit http://www.fs.usda.gov/.
 


What's in a name: lessons from a Firewise USA site



 Blog Post created by megan.fitzgerald-mcgowan on Jun 12, 2020
 

The Firewise USA program greatly values its participants and partners, and looks for opportunities to share and learn from them.  Through the Sites of Excellence Pilot program, we've been using a more focused approach to learn about why sites are successful and what steps they can take to be even more engaged.

We know that engaging neighbors in conversations can be difficult, and sometimes one wrong word will put someone on edge.  How do we overcome these hurdles?  Bill Santner of Crystal Lake Club (Sites of Excellence participant) shares how changing one phrase broke down a wall and got folks to open up and work together.

Crystal Lake Club
National Sites Of Excellence
Wautoma, Wisconsin

Words Do Matter
 
In August of 2019, our Firewise committee along with our Wildland Urban Interface Coordinator and County Forester with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and the manager of the Denver field office at National Fire Protection Association met to go over the results of our initial efforts to have every household have a Home Ignition Zone (HIZ) Assessment completed. At that point approximately 45% of the properties agreed to have an assessment.

Our task at this meeting was to analyze the feedback we received during the assessment timeframe and then go back to the remaining membership to promote having an assessment done during the remainder of 2019. The main discovery during our discussion was that many members had a feeling that “assessment” meant judgement, punishment and accountability. They were cautious to have a government official come on their property and tell them what they had to do to make their properties safer from wildfires. Some even reported that neighbors were telling them that their homeowners’ insurance companies would be given the results and they could lose their insurance coverage if they did not follow the assessment report findings.

During our meeting one of the Crystal Lake Club Firewise committee members offered the idea that we should change the name of the assessments from HIZ to “Fire Safety Check-Up.” Everyone agreed that this title was more descriptive for the public and was non-threatening to the homeowner. We put out a revised invitation with that message and promoted the Check-Ups at our next Club meeting. The results proved effective. We ended the year with 65% of our member households having a Fire Safety Check-Up by the end of 2019.

We believe this proves that Words Do Matter.

Thank you so much Bill for sharing this lesson learned!  To read more about what words can make difference, check out our Community Conversations blog from a couple of years ago or download our findings.

Is your community ready to take the next step on its wildfire journey?  Visit Firewise.org to learn how you can get organized and become a Firewise USA site.
 

Minimizing the effects of wildfire smoke during COVID-19

Current Issues and Events | June 29, 2020

woman wearing a mask during a wildfire


Wildfire smoke occurring during the COVID-19 pandemic can increase susceptibility to the virus and other infections by causing irritation to the respiratory system, resulting in altered immune function. Populations vulnerable to smoke, including those with compromised immune systems, children under 18, pregnant women, adults 65 and over, and outdoor workers need to be aware of this risk.

Encourage your community to take these actionable steps to minimize the respiratory effects of wildfire smoke.

Read more about wildfire smoke

 

COVID-19 News for Wildland Fire Management

 
National and Northeast Regional Wildland Fire/COVID-19 information
 

Nominations Requested for the 2021 Wildfire Mitigation Awards


Established in 2014, the national Wildfire Mitigation Awards program recognizes outstanding work and significant program impact in wildfire preparedness and mitigation. By honoring the achievements of awardees, the program sponsors seek to increase public recognition and awareness of the value of wildfire mitigation efforts.

The Wildfire Mitigation Awards are jointly sponsored by NASF, the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and the USDA Forest Service. The program includes three awards: (1) the National Wildfire Mitigation Award, (2) the National Mitigation Hero Award, and (3) the Wildfire Mitigation Legacy Award.

Effective community fire adaptation efforts can take many shapes. Creating a local mitigation coalition, implementing community wildfire protection plans, conducting community-wide assessments, promoting defensible space and home hardening, treating for hazardous fuels, and engaging fire departments and building code officials to reduce wildfire risk are ALL great examples of wildfire mitigation work.

You can submit a nomination and view the nomination guidelines and selection criteria here on NASF’s website. Please note: the nominations deadline is November 13, 2020.

Have questions? Please contact Meghan Marklewitz at meghan@iafc.org or (703) 896-4839.

4th Annual National Cohesive Strategy Workshop

 
SAVE the DATE!!
October 4-8, 2021 in Asheville, NC

Other NE-MW Wildfire News

Gene Chague: MassWildlife' habitat management, and a revisit to Mahanna Cobble [Berkshire Eagle]
Nature Notes: Using prescribed fire as a management tool [Frederick News Post]
Wildfires and Insurance webinar series recordings now available! [NFPA Xchange - Fire Break – Wildfire Safety Blog]
USDA Forest Service seeks applicants for grants [Bradford Era]
Summer fires raise awareness about how to keep mulch decorative and not destructive [NFPA Xchange - Fire Break – Wildfire Safety Blog]
Maine Forest Service dealing with unprecedented number of wildfires [WGME]
Maine man charged for igniting Island Falls wildfire [NewsCenterMaine.com WCSH-WLBZ]
Maine Forest Service fighting high number of wildfires [Press Herald]
 

Meetings and Trainings


Regional

July 16, 2020: Prescribed Fire Science Workshop [North Atlantic Fire Science Exchange]
  • July 16: registration closes 11:59 pm EDT
  • July 16: first live contact
  • August 12: how-to webinar
  • September 15 - 17: 3-day intensive workshop
September 21-24, 29, 2020 – NE RSC Wildland Fire Management Tools Webinar Series  [VIRTUAL]


National

October 26-November 6, 2020: Southern Blue Ridge TREX, Pickens, SC

November 2-6, 2020: IAFC 2020 WUI Conference, Reno NV

October 4-8, 2021: 4th Annual National Cohesive Strategy Workshop, Asheville, North Carolina
 
Subscribe to this Newsletter
The Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC) delivers articles and stories each month that demonstrate the collaborative efforts of agencies, organizations and communities supporting and promoting the three goals of the Cohesive Strategy: Restoring Resilient Landscapes, Creating Fire Adapted Communities and Responding to Wildfire. 
 
This news update is our primary communication tool with our partners and the public. Looking for more Northeast Region Cohesive Strategy information or past published news update issues? Go to:  http://northeasternwildfire.net
 
GOT NEWS? Does your agency, organization or community have a wildland fire management project or event you'd like to see featured in the NE RSC News Update? Tell us about it! Submissions should be sent by the end of each month to appear in the next monthly issue. Just email to Larry Mastic.
 
 
 
Key Contacts:
Dave Celino

Chair
Chief Fire Warden
Mass. Dept. of Conservation and Recreation

Larry Mastic
Coordinator, Northeast Region
Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy


Important Links
Retrieving Northeast (NE) and National Cohesive Strategy (CS) documents and reports
All things CS plus past NE Regional Strategy Committee news updates








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