Director Miller Testifies at Natural Resources Interim Committee
Last week Director Miller testified before the legislature's Natural Resources Interim Committee, a joint committee of the House and Senate that meets periodically outside of the regular legislative session.
During the brief time allotted, he provided a high level review of the current fire season, outlined the next steps for modernizing IDL's fire program, and briefly introduced the agency's 2023 legislative priority.
IDL Needs Qualified Firefighters and Foresters - the University of Idaho Offers a New Solution
Director Miller published an opinion piece last week noting the need for additional qualified employees working in natural resources, and a new path for people to get into the field.
The director outlined IDL's mission and what we offer, then explained the need. He noted that like many businesses and industries, finding qualified people to fill our natural resource positions presents challenges.
Recognizing people need relevant training to land great jobs, and industry needs highly qualified workers, the University of Idaho recently launched three new associate degree pathways. These programs quickly prepare people to work in natural resources while also laying steppingstones for earning future bachelor’s degrees.
Fewer Acres Burn Under IDL Protection Thanks to a Boost in Resources
IDL went to the Idaho Legislature last session with big needs: increased pay for firefighters, hazard pay, and more firefighters. The legislature responded, funding those needs on behalf of the people of Idaho, and the Governor signed the changes into law.
While IDL isn’t quite ready to call the fire season over, the return on this investment has been encouraging.
As of October 1, IDL had fought 280 wildland fires on lands under its protection, holding the fires to just 4,614 acres burned. That is 97% of the 20-year average for the number of fires. While the number of fires is right on average, the number of acres burned is only 19% of the 20-year average.
For comparison, as of October 1, 2021, IDL had fought 391 wildfires that burned nearly 141,981 acres. Given the severity of the 2021 fire season, there weren’t enough firefighters to stop the fires early.
“The additional resources reduced our response time and brought us closer to catching every fire at 10 acres or less,” said Josh Harvey, IDL Fire Bureau Chief. “A great example is how our firefighters in the Hells Canyon area contained fires that easily could have grown into multi-million dollar incidents.”
October - Cybersecurity Awareness Month
IDL reminded its employees that in our ultra-connected world, cybercrime continues to be a growing threat. Recent data shows that it only takes an average of two days for a cybercriminal to penetrate 93% of company networks. (Forbes, 2022) It is more important now than ever to be knowledgeable of and diligent in preventing security breaches for our agency.
We let employees know the state of Idaho is recognizing Cybersecurity Awareness Month and shared tips to stay secure, at work and home.
IDL employees are expected to participate in the effort by participating in 2022 Lands October Cybersecurity Awareness Month Mandatory Training by November 4th.
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