Killing with Kindness

A nice example of a large landowner in Oahu taking charge and being a steward of his own aina by reviving native plants and animals.

From the Source:

"Mr. Zweng envisions a day when some of his forest will be returned to the natural state it was in before 20,000 kinds of invasive plants and animals arrived, carried by explorers, tourists and indefatigable birds. He likes to point out that what he's attempting is much harder than the discipline known as forest management. 'Here, we're recreating the native forest," he said...

...Already, these three and various other volunteers seem to be making a difference: there are signs of hope in the forest. In meadows thinned of invasive trees and shrubs, new shoots of indigenous koa trees are sprouting, along with the flowering mountain naupaka and the palaa fern. The bright yellow kookoolau, a flower found only in Hawaii, is flourishing here, too...

Still, Mr. Zweng worries about his own mortality and how many years he has left to work in the forest. He dreams of the day the land is restored enough that he might see a bright red apapane or an orange-and-red iiwi, native birds that haven’t been in evidence in the valley for years.

Because in all likelihood, he said, the true verdict on his work will come not from environmentalists or the community, but from nature: 'Nature will tell us we’ve made a difference.'"

"Once fields are thinned of competing invasive plants, and more sun gets through, koa seedlings sprout on their own." - Photo courtesy of Laure Joliet for The New York Times

A Tragic Year for Wildland Firefighters Ends in Reflection (AUDIO)

From the Source:

"'This was an unusual year, and so part of this may be due to just the fact that it was an unusual year, and part of it may be due to the growing footprint of the wildland-urban interface,' Rideout says.

That interface is where homes and even whole cities are being built into the forests, and it's where most of today's high-profile fires happen — Yarnell Hill included. The homes in these zones are being built safer, and Rideout says that comes with some unintended consequences.

'As we take measures to try to make the wildland-urban interface a nice and safe place to be and to occupy, the incentive for it to grow gets even larger, so it's kind of a self-perpetuating situation,' he says."

Above: "The wildfire in Yarnell, Ariz., last June destroyed homes and killed 19 firefighters. Experts say expansion into wildfire-prone areas has created new challenges for firefighters." Courtesy of NPR.

Vets-Turned-Firefighters Find Brotherhood, Purpose

Finding jobs for veterans is already a tough task; finding meaningful jobs for them is even tougher. Fortunately, many vets are turning to firefighting to give them "a sense of camaraderie and purpose they miss." 

From the Source:

'Battalion Chief Richard Hess says many of the veterans really needed the job. "Some of them were having difficulty having jobs just like everybody else in this economy," he says. "Some of them had ... started working in careers that really weren't up to the expectation they had for ... what they want to do with their life."'

'As a department, we're just happy to get a good quality group of guys," he says. "At the same time, it's rewarding on our end to provide them a chance for a good occupation after what they've done for us."'

Above: "Probationary firefighter and military veteran Victor Ramos gets truck driving practice near the 16th Street Firehouse in Union City, N.J. New Jersey's North Hudson Fire Department hired 43 veterans this year." Photo Courtesy of Melanie Burford, NPR

Wildfire Science Returns to Rim Fire

From the Source:

"Although dousing the flames was foremost in people's minds during the recent Rim Fire in Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park, U.S. Geological Survey scientific work continues well after the fire is out. USGS scientists are continuing their critical research characterizing the hidden dangers faced after large wildfires.

While the fire was still smoldering in September, the multi-agency BAER (Burned Area Emergency Response) team developed a burn-severity map and shared it with USGS scientists. USGS assessed the potential for debris flows that tend to occur when the winter rains soak the steep slopes following fires by adding critical information on soil characteristics, the ruggedness of the terrain, and the typical amount of rainfall in that area in order to model the likelihood and possible volumes of debris flows. The just published Rim Fire debris-flow hazards assessment map, will help land and emergency managers focus mitigation treatments on where the greatest damage might be done by post-fire debris flows."

Above: "A recent image from the Landsat 8 satellite in the vicinity of Yosemite National Park, California, during the Rim Fire (August 31). Started on August 17, the Rim Fire had burned over 219,000 acres by August 31 (an area nearly 15 times the size of Manhattan Island). Image is false-colored using bands 6, 5, 4 to allow identification of critical vegetation and fuels information that will help firefighters and emergency managers. In the image fire appears bright red, vegetation is green, smoke is blue, clouds are white, and bare ground is tan-colored."

Researchers Design Satellite to Detect Wildfires - A Step Toward the Holy Grail of Firefighter Safety?

This new satellite technology will change the game for firefighting: 

From the Source: 

"This proposed satellite, called FUEGO – Fire Urgency Estimator in Geosynchronous Orbit, would survey the entire western United States every two minutes or less and could detect a fire that is about 10 feet in diameter. Assuming that the data from the satellite could be transmitted to the appropriate dispatch center within a minute or two, this could be a major step toward keeping fires small… IF the fire agencies have the appropriate initial attack policies in place and an adequate number of firefighting resources, both ground and air-based, to respond and arrive at the fire within the first 10 to 30 minutes."

Above: "Artist’s concept for FUEGO on orbit (FUEGO Concept Art by R. E. Lafever, LBNL)"

Australia Bush Fire Crisis Eases, But Firefighters Warn Fight Isn't Over

"Aggressive firefighter and high-risk strategies" proving successful for fighting bush fires in Australia. Cooperation from local communities has also helped the cause. 

From the Source:

"A combination of high winds and temperatures Wednesday had fueled fears the bush fires burning across a 1,000-mile stretch of New South Wales would spread even farther.

But thanks to fire crews' "extraordinary" work, helped out by some unexpected light rain overnight, the worst of the danger has been avoided, said Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons.

He praised firefighters for their skill and use of "aggressive and high-risk strategies" that included "backburning" operations -- fires begun by emergency crews to reduce potential tinder for the wildfires to feed on -- and thanked local communities for following instructions to keep them safe." 

Above: New South Wales Rural Fire Service crews mop up an area after stopping a fire in Bilpin in the Blue Mountains of Australia on October 23. 

New South Wales Communities Band Together After Bushfire Disasters

From the Source:

"Severe bushfires have destroyed more than 200 properties and damaged 37,000 hectares of land in New South Wales since Thursday.

Whilst dozens of people have lost their homes, many others are reaching out to those affected, as well as emergency services currently working against the blazes.

Charity organisations, local businesses, wildlife rescue teams and members of the community are among those who have shown their support."

Above: "Alecia Newton and Mairead Sheehy busking on Springwood's shopping strip, Macquarie Street on October 20, 2013, to raise money for those who have lost homes in the fire."

GoPro: Fireman Saves Kitten (VIDEO)

Amazing video of firefighters rescuing a kitten from a burning home, all filmed with a GoPro camera - get a taste of what it's like to step in a heroic firefighter's boots!

Shot 100% on the HD HERO3® camera from ‪http://GoPro.com. Fireman Cory Kalanick rescues an unconscious kitten from a burning house filled with smoke. Music Dexter Britain "Perfect Moment" http://dexterbritain.bandcamp.com/ Original video here: http://goo.gl/Eyv8Y

Into the Wildfire: What Science is Learning About Fire and How to Live With It

Incredible article put out by the New York Times putting fire science in a publicly-accessible format and stunning pictures and moving graphics. A must read!

From the Source:

"By suppressing fires ... we’re saving the landscape for the worst conditions,’ a fire researcher says. ‘We need to choose good fire over bad fire, and if we understand spread we can make better choices."

"Fire has always been a part of the natural ecology — many plant species evolved in direct response to it and couldn’t survive without it; when the sap of some pine cones melts, for example, seeds are released. But the reflexive practice of putting out all fires, which has dominated national policy for so many decades, has turned much of the American West into a tinderbox."

Above: "Scientists at the Fire Sciences Laboratory in Missoula observe the behavior of fire in a wind tunnel."

Adapting to New Fire Reality

From the Source:

“In an era when firefighting budgets cannot seem to keep up with wildfires, we seem to be crossing an important threshold, in terms of “acceptable loss.” Our nation continues to be faced with drought, deterioration of many western forests, and growth at the wildland-urban interface, resulting in catastrophic wildfires. Many of these are catastrophic fires; we are past the limits of firefighting effectiveness and the margins of firefighter safety."

Wildfires Consume Funds Flagged for Prevention

From the Source:

“This year, the U.S. Forest Service has spent hundreds of millions of dollars fighting wildfires, cutting into funds originally set aside to prevent them. Fire historian Steve Pyne compares the way we manage fires today to how we manage health—focused on emergencies, and not prevention."

Above: "A fire team lights a restoration burn on the Dahms Tract, Platte River and Wood River area of Nebraska. The Nature Conservancy hopes to demonstrate that there is economic as well as conservation value in restoring tracts of native grasslands. Photo by Chris Helzer/The Nature Conservancy"

Aerial Pictures from Colorado Black Forest Fire Show Incredible Destruction

From the Source:

“A 14,000-acre wildfire has been raging near Colorado Springs for nearly a week, and firefighters are still struggling to contain the blaze. Two people have died so far and about 485 homes have been destroyed in the Black Forest fire. It's now the most destructive wildfire on record in the state's history, beating out last year's giant wildfire that hit the same area.”

Above: Photo by Rick Wilking, Reuters

The Age of Western Wildfires

From the Source:

"The cooler temperatures of fall may have arrived on the East Coast, but in California and the Pacific Northwest, fire season burns on. There are six large fires raging out West, and this year’s season is likely to burn 10 million acres of land, more than in any year since 1960, when federal records began to be kept.

Explanations abound: global warming has provided consistently hotter weather, and warmer winters have meant less snow melt during the spring. Drought has plagued the country, and invasive beetles have killed millions of trees, leaving mountains of ready-to-burn timber."