State Technical Advisory Committee: Prescribed Fire in Hawaii

Some exciting things are happening involving the potential vegetation (fuel) management tools here in Hawaii. The Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) under the USDA Farm Bill’s Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 initiated a State Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) in Hawaii to investigate several related topics with designated sub-committees to lead the charge: 

• Land Easements

• Water Quality

• Prescribed Fire

• Forest Management

• Nutrient Management

Photo Credit: US National Park Service

You guessed it; HWMO is front and center in the Prescribed Fire Sub-Committee, and we are helping to determine the possible usefulness of prescribed fire as a land-management technique here in Hawaiʻi. While fire has been used as a tool in Hawaii for a long time in an agricultural context, the idea that prescribed fire can be used to manage land for conservation and fuel reduction is something that has not been explored thoroughly. That is the role of this sub-committee. So far, we are working with partners from the University of Hawaii (UH), the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR), the Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW), the Hawaii Soil and Water Conservation District, and Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization (HWMO).

While there are many different dimensions to this issue, prescribed fire is not a tool that should be overlooked. In the past 20 years, many states on the US Mainland have taken to using prescribed fire as a cost effective management technique. In these environments it is very necessary to use fire as a tool to manage the forest vegetation that has been overgrowing for the past 100 years due to the intensive suppression regime over the century. While many of those ecosystems are naturally adapted to fire for a multitude of reasons, fire has not become a consistent part of Hawaiʻis larger ecosystem until recently. With the number of fire-prone invasive grasses and shrubs that are populating the Hawaiian landscape, prescribed fire is a tool that needs to be better understood. That is the purpose of this sub-committee; to better understand prescribed fire and its potential benefits and implications in the diverse array of Hawaiian landscapes.

If you have any information regarding prescribed fire here in Hawaii, feel free to contact us at admin@hawaiiwildfire.org. We greatly appreciate any perspectives on this issue that you might be willing to bring to our attention.

To lean more about these public committees and how you can get involved, check out how to take a seat at the table HERE.

Kamilonui-Mariner's Cove Memorial Day Weekend Wildfire Mitigation Project

Representative Gene Ward joins the cause this past weekend.

As a very fitting tribute to Memorial Day, a collaboration of people including military veterans from Team Rubicon, an international veteran service organization that uses disaster response to help reintegrate veterans back into civilian life, came out in full force to create a large firebreak around Kamilonui-Mariner’s Cove. The Firewise Community (the first ever on Oahu as of this year!) of agricultural and residential lots in Hawaii Kai, has been working with HWMO for a couple of years now in an effort to create a more wildfire resilient community.

Carol Jaxon (left) and Elizabeth Reilly (middle) have been instrumental in moving Firewise Communities project forward in Kamilonui-Mariner’s Cove. We cannot thank them enough!

Big mahalo to Team Rubicon for the enormous time and effort they donated to the cause!

This weekend, as part of Wildfire Preparedness Day, we are seeing what it means to be fire-adapted: everyone playing a role to reduce wildfire risk. The Firewise committee consisting of local residents and farmers, Aloha Aina O Kamilo Nui, and Livable Hawaii Kai Hui organized the work days; Team Rubicon volunteers are knocking back fire fuels; neighboring landowners provided access to the land and green waste hauling services; residents are feeding volunteers; and HWMO provided a hazard assessment, continual guidance through the Firewise Communities process, and a $2,000 grant from the U.S. Forest Service. We are so grateful to everyone who is helping out to make Kamilonui - Mariner’s Cove a model for community-driven wildfire protection on Oahu and for the rest of the Hawaiian Islands!

All photos courtesy of Aloha Aina O Kamilonui

Kauai Fire Department Annual Brushfire Meeting

This past Monday, HWMO was fortunate to go to Kauai and be a part of an annual brushfire meeting held at the Kauai Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau. This extremely educational event brought in members of the Kauai County Fire department, landowners, and businesses alike to discuss the status of wildfires on Kauai, the current risk level, and how the Kauai community could manage these risks. 

Some findings that were presented were astounding. According to Kevin Kodama, Senior Service Hydrologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2019 is already on track to be one of riskiest years yet in terms of wildfires as the dry season is already well ahead of the average drought cycle. This year has been identified as a “weak El Niño.” Rain has come down in large volumes at times, feeding the fire-prone brush that ignites very easily. These “leaky” phases of a weak El Niño do not last long and instead, long periods of dry conditions can persist, leaving many areas under “red flag” wildfire conditions (especially when winds pick up and humidity drops).

Elizabeth Pickett, Executive Director of HWMO presented our Vegetation Management Mapping Project at the meeting, as well. She did an amazing job showing the community what we have been able to create over the past few years. After working with over 200 large landowners to record different land areas, we have put together maps displaying management of wildfire fuel throughout the State of Hawaii. It was extremely beneficial to the greater community to learn about whether certain regions of vegetation are being managed, and how they are being managed to prevent wildfires. This information will also help landowners track down funding and knowledge to better manage these areas that have overgrown vegetative fuels. HWMO is proud of the fact that we are helping communities become more knowledgeable and prepared to prevent costly disasters from occurring. 

Elizabeth Pickett discussing HWMOʻs vegetative fuels mapping project

Kawika Smith from the Department of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) also presented on the various suppression techniques they use to mitigate wildfires on over 650,000 areas of land managed by DOFAW statewide. He went into the importance and methods of protecting Hawaiian ecosystems and watersheds from disastrous wildfires. 

Kawika Smith discussing county and federal assistance with wildfire mitigation

There were many other individuals and entities that made an important impact during this Annual Brushfire Meeting, and we would like to thank everyone that attended for being there. Taking part in community events like this one help to make a real difference in keeping the communities of Kauai safe, as well as protecting the fragile ecosystems and watersheds of Hawaii.  

We would also like to show our deepest gratitude to the Kauai Fire Department for using their time and energy to put on such an impactful event. The amount of good that can come out of mitigation efforts such as this can help to reduce the risk of disastrous wildfires when the whole community gets together in the name of knowledge sharing. Mahalo KFD for making this happen.  

Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network Annual Workshop - Ashland, OR

FAC Net Annual Workshop participants representing areas across the U.S. Credit: FAC Net

What a week we had in Ashland, Oregon (April 22 to 25) thanks to the amazing staff from Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network, a wildfire resiliency learning network. HWMO is now officially a Core Member of FAC Net on behalf of our amazing partners across Hawaii and the Western Pacific. FAC Net members from Ashland welcomed us with open arms as they hosted this year’s annual workshop and showcased the inspiring multi-partner work they were doing to protect community and natural areas.

We hiked, we ate, we shared, we listened, we got out of our comfort zones, all of this together with a group of inspiring people from across the U.S. doing the important work to create a more wildfire-resilient future. We were sad to leave our new and old friends but very energized to come back to Hawaii and continue the critical work HWMO is doing to make Hawaii safer from wildfires

On a captivating and education field tour of Lithia Park where a combination of methods to reduce wildfire hazards including prescribed fire are being used to restore the watershed.

Hearing stories about residents teaming up with the Ashland Fire Department and local contractors to create a Firewise Community.

Just like in Hawaii, there are Firewise Communities all over Ashland. Here’s our Executive Director, Elizabeth Pickett, pointing one out.

We were treated to some amazing food throughout the week — and most importantly, ate meals with awesome people!

Views of Ashland's Mountains

Ashland Fire Station and Wildfire Signs

Ali Lerch of Ashland Fire Department welcomes everyone.

Active Self Active Bystander Training

Elizabeth Pickett pointing out a Firewise USA sign.

FAC Net Jeopardy gets hyper competitive.

Very interesting panel on smoke from wildfires.

Eating delicious food together.

Preparing for the field tour.

Biodiverse canopies.

Color swatch matching game.

Learning about the fire history of Ashland.

Views of the forested mountaintops.

Fuels reduction in Lithia Park.

View of homes intermixed with the wildlands.

Beautiful trails abound.

Hearing about wildfire management in Lithia Park.

Switchbacks galore.

Burn evidence.

Collaboration lessons learned.

Firewise Community shares their stories.

Group rotation to hear stories about becoming a Firewise Community.

Partnership between residents and local firefighters.

Sharing a common bond over protecting communities from wildfire.

Firewise committee member shares lessons learned.

Residents share their perspectives on what it's like to be in a Firewise Community.

An evening of fine appetizers, fun poetry sharing, and a speech from the Fire Chief.

Black Out Poetry.

Poetry to get out of our comfort zones.

Exploring Ashland including its famous Lithia Water.

A night out at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

Good times with amazing people from FAC Net.

A reflection poem from Pablo, HWMO’s Community Outreach Coordinator:

It was a truly inspiring and motivating week in Ashland, 
hearing from locals and their sobering stories about 
the realities of a vastly changing climate, 
of summers that so smoky kids stay indoors for weeks on end, 
of people packing their bags and leaving 
because their lungs cannot inhale particulate pollution.

I was able to join a community of connectors from across the U.S., 
of people in the wildland fire field who are taking measures 
in their areas to scrap status quo and think outside of the box, 
to topple silos and bridge groups who've never sat at tables together.

The immense wildfire situation we face requires everyone 
and requires solutions both new and revived, 
where traditional knowledge centuries in the making intertwines 
with the creative capacity we all have to adapt and innovate.

It takes us all to create fire-adapted communities.

Molokai Vegetative Fuels Management Collaborative Action Planning and Mapping Workshop

Marking important areas to protect on a shared map.

Fire follows fuel. On April 2 at The Nature Conservancy office in Kaunakakai, Molokai, we convened a group of 17 people representing a patchwork of different agencies, groups, and organizations across a variety of fields to come together to plan for collaborative, large-scale vegetation management to reduce wildfire risks throughout the island. This was part of a series of workshops on Oahu, Kauai, and Hawaii Island we held in February on this matter (we had a similar meeting on Maui in 2018).

During the workshop, participants:

• Checked out the results of recent efforts to map current management of hazardous vegetative fuels (thanks to all of the information that partners contributed).

• Identified and discussed shared regional fuels management priorities to mitigate the risks of wildfire across our island landscapes through a facilitated series of small and large group conversations.

Drawing areas in need of vegetation management.

It takes everyone!

Mapping current and desired areas for vegetative fuels management…adding to our huge statewide collaborative map.

The knowledge and priorities of the participants will contribute to planning next steps in the ongoing collaboration to manage vegetative fuels to reduce wildfire and protect our communities and natural resources.

In addition, some groups stayed after the action planning meeting to map their areas of current and desired vegetation management projects.

We are all in this together and it takes all of us!

Stay tuned via our website, social media, and e-newsletter (sign up at the bottom of this page) for final project-related products before this summer.

Mahalo DOFAW, UH CTAHR Cooperative Extension / Pacific Fire Exchange for co-organizing with us.

Paniolo Hale Firewise Community Hazard Assessment

The assessment crew pointing out vegetative hazards on the wildland-urban interface of Paniolo Hale.

On April 1, 2019, HWMO flew to Molokaʻi, past the stunning cliffs of the North Shore, for a Firewise community hazard assessment of Paniolo Hale on the West End.

Paniolo Hale is an 8.75-acre condominium complex consisting of 21 buildings that include 76 dwelling units and a main office. Approximately 140 people live there, but nearly all are part-time residents (only about a half-dozen or so are full-time residents). Each unit is privately owned and ranges from studios to one or two-bedroom units. There is a resident manager and landscaping manager on-site. The condos are located in Kaluakoi in West Molokaʻi as part of a larger cluster of resort-style homes and vacation rentals along the scenic Kepuhi Beach (Paniolo Hale being the northern-most development in this zone). 

Across the gulch from Paniolo Hale due south is the partially-abandoned Kepuhi Beach Resort. Although some of the buildings are completely abandoned, many of the buildings are used as vacation rentals. Most of the grounds’ vegetation is still maintained, but the large golf course surrounding it is no longer in use and has gone fallow since the resort officially closed over a decade ago. Another condominium complex is situated due southeast of Paniolo Hale: Ke Nani Kai.

Captain Hanale Lindo of Maui Fire Department in front of roadside fuels.

An abandoned golf course that once served as a wildland buffer, or greenbreak, for the community.

The assessment team taking a look at the wildland fuels.

In early 2019, HWMO was contacted by the landscaping manager of Paniolo Hale for advice on wildfire prevention opportunities for the community. HWMO informed her about Firewise Communities and after a short turnaround, the Paniolo Hale neighborhood board decided to proceed in working towards Firewise Community recognition. As a first major step, a group of proactive residents and Paniolo hale staff met with HWMO, Maui Fire Department, and State Division of Forestry and Wildlife for the Firewise hazard assessment.

The assessment team first convened at the Paniolo Hale main office to map out an itinerary for the day, determine priority community areas to examine on the field assessment, and establish boundaries for the Firewise site. Following the meeting, the group walked to several areas to gain a vantage point of the intersection between wildland and urban areas. Along with these priority areas, the team also visited several representative homes to conduct a “Home Ignition Zone” assessment to better comprehend the wildfire hazards at the individual household level and identify locally-relevant examples of best practices for creating defensible space and fire-proofing structures.

The scenic Kepuhi Beach near Paniolo Hale.

Paniolo Hale is well on pace to become the first Firewise Community on Molokaʻi by the end of 2019! Mahalo Paniolo Hale!

Banner photo: view of Paniolo Hale from Kepuhi Beach Resort

Nahelehele Dry Forest Symposium 2019

Over the years, the native dryland forest ecosystems of Hawaiʻi have been severely diminished from a number of different causes, including climate change and wildfire. That’s not stopping a large collection of people working hard to preserve, protect, and restore these precious and under-appreciated forests. On March 27, Kaahahui O Ka Nahelehele, a non-profit supporting “the precious few remaining remnant dryland forest habitats,” gathered 150 people under the same roof at Imiloa Astronomy Center in Hilo for the 2019 Nahelehele Dryland Forest Symposium.

HWMO was invited as a speaker this year to share our exciting vegetative fuels management mapping project (many project collaborators were in the room for the talk). Addressing wildfire at the landscape-level and across-boundaries is an essential part of taking wildfire action to the next level. It’s an essential part of protecting and revitalizing the amazing native forests that are left.

What is a dryland forest symposium without some of our favorite native plant friends??

The recent STEW-Map study shows HWMO is a top connector in Northwest Hawaii Island.

Puukapu Pastoral Wildfire Planning Meeting and RSG! Workshop

HFD gives a presentation on wildfire access in Puukapu.

An elaborate 3D map the Puukapu Pastoral committee assembled.

Last year, Puukapu Pastoral became the 9th Firewise Community on Hawaii Island (and the 4th Firewise Community statewide on Hawaiian Home Lands). A committed group of community members from Puukapu Pastoral Steering Committee / Firewise are taking action to reduce the fire threats of the Waimea homestead area. Through outreach and education, community members are reaching out to neighbors about the importance of creating defensible space around houses, hardening homes, and having a household evacuation plan. The committee is also developing a well-thought-out, community-driven plan to create safer first response access and ingress/egress.

On March 21, the committee held a community meeting and invited HWMO and HFD representatives to give presentations. HWMO’s Pablo Akira Beimler gave a comprehensive Ready, Set, Go! wildfire preparedness workshop to the intent participants. The highlight of the night for us was to see an amazing 3D map the committee members had created (they were up till the wee hours of the night!) to demonstrate their color-coded road system proposal. We were very impressed with the level of detail and the immense effort and care the group put into this project. This community spirit is what keeps HWMO motivated to do the work that we do and support efforts like this. Keep up the great work, Puukapu!

Hawaii Island (Kailapa) Vegetative Fuels Management Collaborative Action Planning Workshop

Thank you to everyone who joined us!

Fire follows fuel. On February 26 at the Hawaii Innovation Center in Hilo, we convened a huge group of 48 people on Hawaii Island representing a patchwork of different agencies, groups, and organizations across a variety of fields to come together to plan for collaborative, large-scale vegetation management to reduce wildfire risks throughout the island. This was part of a series of workshops on Oahu, Kauai, and Hawaii Island we held in February on this matter (we had a similar meeting on Maui in 2018). Big mahalo to the Kailapa community, a nationally recognized Firewise Community on Hawaiian Home Lands in Kawaihae, for hosting us at their beautiful new pavilion.

During the workshop, participants:

• Checked out the results of recent efforts to map current management of hazardous vegetative fuels (thanks to all of the information that partners contributed).

• Identified and discussed shared regional fuels management priorities to mitigate the risks of wildfire across our island landscapes through a facilitated series of small and large group conversations.

Marking values at risk and important areas for risk reduction.

Sharing ideas for next step priority actions.

Voting for priority project ideas.

The knowledge and priorities of the participants will contribute to planning next steps in the ongoing collaboration to manage vegetative fuels to reduce wildfire and protect our communities and natural resources.

We are all in this together and it takes all of us!

Stay tuned via our website, social media, and e-newsletter (sign up at the bottom of this page) for final project-related products before this summer.

Mahalo DOFAW, UH CTAHR Cooperative Extension / Pacific Fire Exchange for co-organizing with us.

Hawaii Island (Hilo) Vegetative Fuels Management Collaborative Action Planning Workshop

Thank you to everyone who joined us!

Fire follows fuel. On February 22 at the Hawaii Innovation Center in Hilo, we convened a large group of 20 people on Hawaii Island representing a patchwork of different agencies, groups, and organizations across a variety of fields to come together to plan for collaborative, large-scale vegetation management to reduce wildfire risks throughout the island. This was part of a series of workshops on Oahu, Kauai, and Hawaii Island we held in February on this matter (we had a similar meeting on Maui in 2018).

During the workshop, participants:

• Checked out the results of recent efforts to map current management of hazardous vegetative fuels (thanks to all of the information that partners contributed).

• Identified and discussed shared regional fuels management priorities to mitigate the risks of wildfire across our island landscapes through a facilitated series of small and large group conversations.

Mayor Harry Kim sharing about the importance of fuels management for public safety.

Marking values at risk and areas for fuels treatments.

Chief Eric Moller pointing out values at risk at PTA.

The knowledge and priorities of the participants will contribute to planning next steps in the ongoing collaboration to manage vegetative fuels to reduce wildfire and protect our communities and natural resources.

We are all in this together and it takes all of us!

Stay tuned via our website, social media, and e-newsletter (sign up at the bottom of this page) for final project-related products before this summer.

Mahalo DOFAW, UH CTAHR Cooperative Extension / Pacific Fire Exchange for co-organizing with us.

Special thank you to Mayor Harry Kim, Chief Moller from US Army-Garrison, FES and Chief Okinaka from Hawaii Fire Department for joining us at the workshop.