Great Basin Fire Science Exchange

Returning fire to the land: Stewardship through traditional practices of the Séliš, Qĺispé and Ksanka
2022-06-12 08:00 - 17:00 (America/Los_Angeles)
View video (7:05).
For thousands of years, the vast majority of fires on the land were intentionally set by Indigenous Peoples of this region for a variety of reasons. Today, on the Flathead Reservation in Western Montana, the Division of Fire of the Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes’ Forestry Department is reclaiming a traditional relationship with fire on the landscape. Hear from the team about this work and how these fire dependent landscapes benefit from this holistic approach.

Nevada Youth Range Camp
2022-06-16 - 2022-06-26
Range Camp Flyer
High school youth are invited to enjoy a week of fun, camping and learning about rangelands and natural resource management in Nevada. Camp will be held at the Timber Creek Campground providing a beautiful setting for learning. The purpose of this camp is to provide youth with the knowledge and understanding of how decisions are made about natural resources on Nevada’s rangelands.
The last camp was June 19-26, 2022 at Timber Creek Campground northeast of McGill, NV.
This camp is sponsored by the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management. See https://nevada.rangelands.org/youth-range-camp/
for more details and application materials.
Contact Camp Director Ethan Mower with questions at emower@parks.nv.gov | 775-726-3564

Engaging Indigenous communities in climate resilience research
2022-06-16 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
Description: This presentation discusses a partnership between the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe (PLPT) in northern Nevada and a team of university-based scientists. The research team engaged PLPT stakeholder groups through workshops, interviews, and focus groups to understand how climate change and upstream pressures threaten PLPT ecosystems, lands, and resources. Stakeholders emphasized that climate change planning must be grounded in and informed by Indigenous knowledge practices and protocols, in conjunction with decolonizing approaches to climate adaptation research that returns agency to the PLPT.
Presenters: Schuyler Chew is Mohawk Wolf clan from Six Nations Grand River and grew up on the Tuscarora Nation. As an environmental scientist, he is committed to partnering with Indigenous communities on climate adaptation research. His dissertation research on the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe’s resilience to climate change was funded in part by the Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center.
Karletta Chief (Diné) is an Associate Professor and Extension Specialist in the Department of Environmental Science at the University of Arizona, and is also the Director of the Indigenous Resilience Center (IRC). As an Extension Specialist, she works to bring relevant water science to Native American communities in a culturally sensitive manner, and at the IRC she aims to facilitate efforts of UArizona climate/environment researchers, faculty, staff, and students working with Native Nations to build resiliency to climate impacts and environmental challenges.

Structural damage from wildfires in WUI communities
2022-06-21 14:00 - 15:00
Webinar recording.
Destructive wildfires are now a real threat in regions across the country and beyond what was once considered as the fire season, examples of which are the 2016 Gatlinburg Fire in the Southeast and the 2021 Marshall Fire in late December. Existing wildfire risk assessment procedures typically use simulation modeling to quantify the wildfire exposure to wildland-urban interface (WUI) communities, but rely on subjective estimates of the susceptibility of structures to fire in order to quantify risk. Thus, there is a need to better understand and characterize the effectiveness of different mitigation actions related to individual structure features and community layout on the resilience of a WUI community to fire. This presentation discusses findings from the analyses of past wildfire events and introduces a streamlined model to capture fire spread inside WUI communities to quantify structural damage. The proposed model can be used to guide mitigation actions in existing and new communities, and inform preparedness and response strategies by evaluating the likelihood of successful suppression based on the rate of fire spread.

Denver water and US Forest Service spent over $60 million to protect Denver's water supply. Did it work?
2022-06-22 11:00 - 12:00
Webinar recording.
This webinar presents research which provides insight on how the economic returns from proactive wildfire mitigation could be improved. The research team produced an economic assessment of Denver’s Forests to Faucets partnership, a collaboration which invested >$60 million in wildfire mitigation projects between 2011 and 2019. The research, combining wildfire modeling, sediment modeling, and primary and secondary data on economic values, quantified the impact of the actual investments on multiple values at risk. Large benefits to source water protection and other values at risk resulted from these proactive investments but the benefits only exceed the costs of funding wildfire mitigation under certain conditions.

Westwide Fuel Assessment: June 2022 (S3 E3 of Reading the Tea Leaves)
2022-06-23 08:00 - 17:00
Webinar recording.
The cool wet spring across much of the northwestern US has created a sea of cheatgrass that has improved fuelbed continuity and fuel loading, often exceeding 200 percent of normal. As a result we expect the potential for grass driven wildfires, especially in the Snake River Plain, eastern Washington, northwestern Nevada and northeastern California to be at least average to considerably above average.

IFTDSS for prescribed fire plans
2022-06-27 08:00 - 17:00
Access free online course.
You can enroll yourself in this on-demand online course once you enter the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. Select “How to Use IFTDSS for Rx Burn Plans” on the righthand side.

Wildfire and climate change for teachers (grades 6-12)
2022-06-28 08:00 - 10:30
Check back for upcoming virtual workshop opportunities and curriculum materials.
Engage your students in hands-on activities to explore climate change and wildfire in the Southwest! This standards-aligned curriculum unit developed in coordination with the USDA Southwest Climate Hub uses experiments, games, demonstrations, and a group project to introduce students to how increased temperature and changes in precipitation affect wildfire risk in ecosystems. In this workshop, you will hear from an expert in the field, participate in a Q&A session, and then get training to implement these lessons in your classroom. Participating teachers will receive a $50 stipend and the opportunity to win raffle prizes.

Five key areas around the home to examine for fire risk
2022-07-05 08:00 - 08:30
Short video (2:39).
Learn 5 key areas around your home to inspect when assessing your property’s wildfire risk.

FlamMap 6.2: An introduction and overview of new capabilities
2022-07-06 10:00 - 11:00
Webinar recording.
Description: This webinar will provide an introduction and overview of the FlamMap modeling system and its new capabilities with focus on several new additions:

Landscape Utility for the creation and extraction of LANDFIRE based landscape files
Spatial version of the First Order Fire Effects Model (FOFEM)
Additional support for raster formats
GeoTIFFs now supported when generating landscapes
Save Raster Outputs as Single GeoTIFF File
Measure Tool
New tools to edit and graph weather

Presenter: Chuck McHugh, Fire Spatial Analyst, USFS RMRS Missoula Fire Sciences Lab

Lightning fire occurrence prediction: Modelling for operational use
2022-07-08 08:30 - 09:30
Webinar recording.
Wotton, Canadian Forest Service, explains lightning fire ignition and the important processes that determine the day-to-day variation of this important source of summertime fire activity in Canada. This presentation is for both academic and operational audiences in Canada’s wildfire community.
Examples from models developed and used in Ontario’s fire occurrence prediction system were provided as well as some comparisons to similar model development in other regions of the country. Reviewing the history and operational use of these models in Ontario provides useful examples of the challenges and opportunities (and ultimately the long-term investment required) in getting research into operational use in wildland fire management.

An Indigenous framework to guide research and restoration in fire-adapted landscapes
2022-07-13 09:00 - 10:00
Webinar recording.
Description: Worldwide, Indigenous peoples are leading the revitalization of their/our cultures through the restoration of ecosystems in which they are embedded, including in response to increasing “megafires.” Yet, despite growing recognition that just and effective conservation is only possible through partnerships with, or led by, Indigenous peoples, decolonizing approaches to restoration have received insufficient attention. Further, reconciliation will be incomplete without Indigenous-led restoration of Indigenous lands, knowledges, and cultures. In this webinar, we will introduce the concept of “walking on two legs” to guide restoration scientists and practitioners in advancing the interconnected processes of Indigenous-led restoration and reconciliation in Indigenous territories. As an action-oriented framework articulated by Secwépemc Elder Ronald E. Ignace, “walking on two legs” seeks to bring Indigenous knowledges into balance with western scientific knowledge in service of upholding an Indigenous stewardship ethic that is embedded in Indigenous ways of relating to land and embodies principles of respect, reciprocity, and responsibility. Grounding our discussion in the context of fire-adapted ecosystems of western Canada and unceded and traditional Secwépemc territory, Secwepemcúl̓ecw, we will share two case studies of collaborative and Indigenous-led research and restoration to demonstrate how “walking on two legs” provides a pathway to uphold respectful relationships with Indigenous peoples, knowledges, and territories through Indigenous-led restoration.
Presenters: Marianne Ignace, Director, Indigenous Languages Program and First Nations Language Centre, Simon Fraser University
Sarah Disckson-Hoyle, PhD candidate and Public Scholar, Faculty of Forestry, University of British Columbia

Arid and Semi-Arid Lands Seed Technology and Restoration Online Course
2022-07-18 08:00 - 17:00
Who: This training course was developed in concert with Society for Ecological Restoration and BLM’s National Training Center. It is available to restoration practitioners within the DOI and our partners. Target Audience: Natural Resource Specialists, Fire, Fuels, Emergency Stabilization and Rehabilitation, Botanists, Wildlife Biologists, Ecologists, Range, Minerals, Mining and Reclamation
What: This self-paced on-line course is intended to serve as an introduction to seed technology and arid and semi-arid lands restoration as a first step towards more in-depth in person restoration and revegetation courses. It provides world-class training on restoring dry land ecosystems, which are critical resources in tackling the climate crisis. By the end of the course, participants will have an understanding of:​ Ecological restoration principles, standards of practice, and concepts to increase the success of restoration efforts​, arid/semi-arid ecosystems and the challenges they pose to successful restoration​, and how to apply ecological restoration best practices and concepts in restoration planning in arid and semi-arid ecosystems​.
Where: Request an account here eDOI and search for: Arid and Semi-Arid Lands Seed Technology and Restoration.
The course consists of the following modules/lessons. Each are accessed separately and must be taken in sequential order.
Module 1: Introduction
Module 2: The National Seed Strategy
Module 3: Principles, Standards and Concepts
Lesson 3.1: Principles and Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration
Lesson 3.2: Principles, Standards and Concepts – Native Seed Standards
Module 4: Arid and Semi-Arid Systems
Lesson 4.1: Overview of Drylands
Lesson 4.2: Restoration Challenges
Lesson 4.3: Current Knowledge
Module 5: Developing and Implementing a Restoration Plan
Introduction
Lesson 5.1: Project Context
Lesson 5.2: Vision, Goals, and Objectives
Lesson 5.3: Plant Materials Selection and Procurement
Lesson 5.4: Site Preparation
Lesson 5.5: Developing and Implementing Seeding and Planting Strategies
Lesson 5.6: Monitoring and Management
Lesson 5.7: Putting It All Together

Western Governors' Association Annual Meeting
2022-07-26 - 2022-07-28
Meeting website.
The two-day event, hosted by Idaho Governor and WGA Chair Brad Little, featured the Western Governors and their specials guests in public conversations about western drought, cross-boundary land management, cybersecurity, clean energy, broadband deployment and telehealth expansion.

Wildfire impacts on water infrastructure
2022-08-16 14:00 - 15:00
Webinar recording.
Join presenter Erica Fisher for a summary of what we know so far about how structures in wildfires influence our water infrastructure and what can be done to potentially stop further contamination from wildfire events.

PNW August 2022 Drought and Climate Outlook
2022-08-22 11:00 - 12:00
Webinar recording.
According to the August 2, 2022 U.S. Drought Monitor, 39.5% of the Pacific Northwest Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) is in drought. A very wet spring and early summer has greatly improved conditions compared to March, when over 70% of the region was in drought. However, a large part of Oregon is still in Extreme (D3)/Exceptional (D4) Drought, as are pockets in Idaho. This webinar will provide more information on the current conditions and outlooks, as well as two presentations on OpenET.
These webinars provide the region’s stakeholders and interested parties with timely information on current and developing drought conditions, as well as climatic events like El Niño and La Niña. Speakers will also discuss the impacts of these conditions on things such as wildfires, floods, disruption to water supply and ecosystems, as well as impacts to affected industries like agriculture, tourism, and public health.

Climate conversations: Wildfire
2022-08-25 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
Climate change is increasing the frequency, severity, and extent of area burned by wildfires in the U.S., putting more people at risk of exposure to fire itself and to smoke, which can travel thousands of miles and affect the health of millions of people. A.R. “Ravi” Ravishankara (Colorado State University) will moderate a conversation between Sarah Coefield (Missoula City-County Health Department) and Erica Fischer (Oregon State University) about how planners and decision makers are coping with these challenges and working to protect the built environment and human health.

Post-fire logging in southern Colorado: Changes to post-fire recovery
2022-08-31 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
Following a wildfire, successful tree regeneration is mediated by multiple factors, from the microsite to landscape scale. This presentation demonstrates the importance of microsite conditions such as soil moisture and temperature in predicting conifer tree establishment. The speakers examined the footprint and behavior of a large 2018 wildfire in southern Colorado to understand how fire severity and post-fire logging influenced stand structure, fuels, vegetation, and soil microsite conditions. Their findings show that salvage-logged plots demonstrated lower daily average temperature and minimum soil moisture and higher fuel loading across most fuel size classes relative to unlogged plots, which also corresponded with a loss of dead standing wood and little to no canopy cover. Early post-fire conifer regeneration was low across all plots, but lower soil moisture and higher soil temperature negatively impacted the density of regeneration. Careful consideration of soil impacts and the associated changes to forest conditions should be taken when conducting post-fire logging to prevent detrimental effects on microsite conditions and forest recovery.

An Introduction to the Fire Adapted Communities Pathways Tool
2022-09-01 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
Join FAC Net and Travis Paveglio as they present the new Fire Adapted Communities Pathways Tool. The Fire Adapted Communities Pathways Tool helps users identify a range of fire adaptation practices and resources that research and experience indicate are more likely to work in the places they live.
Learn more about the tool (or download it in advance of the presentation) here: https://fireadaptednetwork.org/resources/fac-pathways-tool/

Ecosystem Restoration 2022 - Free online course
2022-09-19 - 2022-11-20
Course website and registration link
Watch the course trailer
Are you interested in joining the global movement to restore our world? Do you want to become more skilled at preventing, halting, and reversing the degradation of ecosystems? Are you looking to create a national blueprint for ecosystem restoration in your country? The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Convention on Biological Diversity are offering a FREE Massive Open Online Course on Ecosystem Restoration.
This course compiles research from leading institutions engaged in ecosystem restoration to build awareness and skills on the process of restoring ecosystems. The course serves as an introduction to the Short-Term Action Plan on Ecosystem Restoration (STAPER) – a methodology adopted by the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity to support governments in the development and implementation of their national restoration strategies.
The course starts on 19 September 2022. It is designed to support government representatives in creating a national blueprint for ecosystem restoration, but is open to everyone.

Vegetation type conversions in the southwestern US: Frontline observations and management responses
2022-09-21 11:00 - 12:00
Webinar recording.
Ecosystems of the western United States are experiencing vegetation type conversions (VTC) in response to land-use change, climate warming, and their interactive effects with wildland fire. VTC is one of the most pressing management issues in the southwestern US, yet current strategies to intervene and address change often use trial-and-error approaches devised after the fact. This presentation discusses findings on VTC challenges, management responses, and outcomes from the collective experience of managers, scientists, and practitioners across the southwestern US.
Ecological reorganization across the region is not only extensive – it is complex, predominantly driven by high-severity wildfire. By a large margin, affected semi-arid forests convert to shrubland, while chaparral and sagebrush areas nearly always convert to non-native grasses. Management interventions in VTC areas most often attempt to reverse changes, although these efforts cover only a small portion of high-severity burn areas undergoing VTC. Efforts to facilitate VTC are rare but hold the potential to cover large spatial areas.
The presenter’s findings underscore that type conversion is a common outcome of high-severity wildland fire in the southwestern US. As the drivers increase with climate change, VTC appears increasingly likely in many ecological contexts, and may require management paradigms to transition as well.

Communication strategies for range professionals- Webinar series
2022-09-22 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
Who are you talking to?
Rangeland professionals know a lot about rangeland ecology and management, but not about marketing, especially online communication. Online communication is here to stay, investing time now to learn more about it will prepare you for the future.

Drivers of annual grass invasion at local and regional scales
2022-10-18 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
This presentation shares results from a recent region-wide field survey of sagebrush rangelands in Oregon and Idaho, where we examined drivers of annual grass invasion at local and regional scales, and how grazing intensity at different scales can interact with environmental determinants of vegetation.

Communication strategies for range professionals - A webinar series
2022-10-20 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
What are you saying to them and what should they do?
Rangeland professionals know a lot about rangeland ecology and management, but not about marketing, especially online communication. Online communication is here to stay, investing time now to learn more about it will prepare you for the future.

Three years of targeted grazing to reduce wildfire risk
2022-10-25 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
This presentation discusses a pilot project in partnership with the BC Cattlemen’s Association and the Province of British Columbia that uses cattle grazing to reduce wildfire risk in wildland-urban interface areas. Amanda Miller, of Palouse Rangeland Consulting is engaged as the liaison, coordinator, and researcher for the development, pilot, and testing of livestock use models for fine fuel management.

Snag hazard mapping to reduce risk to wildland fire responders with LANDFIRE
2022-10-26 10:00 - 11:00
Webinar recording.

LANDFIRE - Informal office hours recordings
2022-10-26 10:00 - 2022-12-07 11:00
Webinar registration for upcoming.
Recorded Office Hours 2022
Recorded Office Hours Summer and Fall 2021

Resistance and resilience for rangelands: What do they mean?
2022-11-01 12:00 - 13:00
Webinar recording.
This presentation discusses the following topics as they relate to rangelands:

Resistance and Resilience are commonly used terms in discussions about agriculture and preparing for the future.
Provide a common understanding of these terms as they apply to the ecology of grazed systems.
Relationships between ecological resistance and resilience, disturbances, and ecological processes will be discussed.

7th Annual SageCon Summit
2022-11-02 - 2022-11-03
The Oregon SageCon Partnership met November 2-3, 2022, in Burns, Oregon. You can access presentations, resources, and recordings using the link provided.
Summit Themes

Connect local, state, and federal partners working toward resilient rangelands in southeastern Oregon and across the Great Basin.
Share information, ideas and resources to leverage our collective knowledge, with an emphasis on strategies for addressing invasive annual grasses in our rangelands.
Inspire action and support collaborative efforts in 2023 and beyond.

Regulating Colorado's WUI
2022-11-07 09:00 - 10:00
Webinar recording.
This webinar features insights and lessons from three communities in Colorado —the City of Colorado Springs, Eagle County, and Ouray County— and their successful approaches to local adoption and enforcement of wildfire regulations. This webinar is based on a new report from the Community Wildfire Planning Center, Regulating the Wildland-Urban Interface in Colorado.
