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Teamwork and Good Neighbor Authority Helps Improve Forest Health
Big Country News, 10-19-23
BOISE - On August 13, 2022, lightning sparked the Four Corners wildfire on the Payette and Boise National Forests near Cascade, Idaho. The incident management team deployed by the national forests contained the fire by mid-September of 2022, but it had already burned 14,000 acres.
Given that the incident occurred in a fireshed that presented great risks to nearby communities, leaving the dead and dying trees in the wildland-urban interface (WUI) would create untold future wildfire risks for those living in the area.
That’s why a diverse team of forest resource specialists from the United States Forest Service (USFS), Idaho Department of Lands (IDL), and the forest products industry sprang to action. In the aftermath of the conflagration, they made plans to reduce the heavy fuel load left by dead or dying trees and restore critical portions of the forest to a healthy state. Together, they identified a treatment area and quickly completed a thorough environmental analysis for salvaging dead, dying, and hazardous trees on 390 acres of the French Hazard WUI Project area.
Almost three-fourths of fires Idaho state officials tracked in 2023 were human caused
Idaho Capital Sun, 10-17-23
The sharp increase in human-caused fires in Idaho continued throughout the summer and into the fall, with Idaho Department of Lands officials investigating 206 fires caused by people so far this year, state officials said Tuesday.
The 206 human-caused fires reported by the Idaho Department of Lands so far in 2023 compare to 78 fires caused by lighting over the same time period.
In 2022, state officials investigated 127 human-caused fires and 153 fires caused by lighting, Idaho Department of Lands records show.
Idaho Department of Lands Director Dustin Miller briefed Gov. Brad Little and the other members of the State Board of Land Commissioners about the 2023 season during a meeting Tuesday at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise.
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Human-started blazes dominate Idaho's mild fire season
Boise State Public Radio News, 10-18-23
Idaho, like most of the country this year, had a relatively light wildfire season. But state officials noted one concerning trend.
206 of the 284 fires the Idaho Department of Lands responded to -- or 73% -- were started by people.
"We also have more people living near the wildland-urban interface, near endowment lands, and so we're seeing more unwanted human-caused fires," IDL Director Dustin Miller said in an end-of-year update to the Board of Land Commissioners Tuesday.
The biggest fires in Idaho this summer were on U.S. Forest Service land, such as the Hayden Fire on the Salmon-Challis National Forest.
The total number of fires that IDL responded to this year was close to normal, but the blazes didn't burn a lot of acres – only about 2,600 of the roughly 9 million IDL is responsible for, which is about 10% of the 20-year-average for acres burned.
Idaho wildfire toll this year: 86K acres
Lewiston Tribune, 10-18-23
Fires burned more than 86,000 acres in Idaho this season.
Idaho Department of Lands Director Dustin Miller gave the Idaho Board of Land Commissioners what’s expected to be the final fire season update Tuesday morning.
The state spent a total of around $22 million on fire suppression, but $4.7 million is reimbursable. Miller said that the reimbursable costs are when IDL personnel are sent to land owned by other agencies and those agencies pay back the state department.
Only 2,582 acres burned on IDL land this year, which is significantly less than previous years.
“That’s a pretty impressive feat given the kind of acreage that our folks are protecting,” Miller said. “I’m really proud of the work our men and women gave on the fire line.”
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Closed burning season ending for Idaho
Clearwater Tribune, 10-18-23
Closed fire season” which is otherwise known as the five months of the year that burn permits are legally required in Idaho ends Friday, Oct. 20.
Burn permits are normally required May 10 through Oct. 20 each year and are issued by the Idaho Department of Lands (IDL).
Idaho law requires any person planning to burn outside city limits within Idaho, including crop residue burning, to obtain a state burn permit during the closed period.
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Closed Burning Season Ending for Idaho
Big Country News, 10-14-23
BOISE - “Closed fire season,” which is otherwise known as the five months of the year that burn permits are legally required in Idaho, ends Friday, October 20. Burn permits are normally required from May 10 through October 20 each year and are issued by the Idaho Department of Lands (IDL).
Idaho law requires any person planning to burn outside city limits within Idaho, including crop residue burning, to obtain a state burn permit during the closed period.
“For areas where debris burning is permitted, although obtaining a burn permit after the closed season ends is not required, there are good reasons to voluntarily apply for the free permit,” said IDL Fire Management Chief Josh Harvey. "No matter the time of year, anyone starting a fire is responsible for that fire until it is out. If your fire gets away, you can be held liable for any property damages and for fire suppression costs.”
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Humans caused 75% of Idaho Wildfires in 2023
KISSFM, 10-18-23
When you decide to call Idaho your home, you may not know it, but you're automatically agreeing to a few things:
- You'll hear more potato jokes than you're comfortable with
- You have to watch at least one season of Breaking Bad just to see Aaron Paul
- It's generally frowned upon when you set things on fire here
It's that last part that's the sticking point for this writer today.
According to the latest statistics, of all the recorded wildfires in Idaho in 2023 so far, 75% of them were caused by humans. For those keeping score at home, it's 78 fires caused by lightning, and 206 human-caused fires. That's awful.
Even worse, the cost of fighting said human-caused fires is expected to reach up to $17.4 million dollars by the end of 2023. That's not cheap.
This writer isn't going to pretend to be a fire expert. I'm not. However, here's a few general rules I follow so I am not one of those humans causing a wildfire:
- Don't shoot off fireworks on grass. Ever. No one cares if it worked last year
- If you do not know how to properly start, maintain, and extinguish a fire in the wilderness, do not start one
- Still in the wilderness? Don't shoot off fireworks
- Have a fire extinguisher handy at all times whenever working with any kind of fire
- Again, with the fireworks? Can't you just go to a fireworks show like a normal person?
Jokes aside, please be careful out there. Millions of dollars worth of damage is being done, animals are being killed and losing their homes, and we just want to see Idaho stay as beautiful as she always has been.
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Closed burning season ending for Idaho
KIFI, 10-16-23
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - “Closed fire season,” which is otherwise known as the five months of the year that burn permits are legally required in Idaho, ends Friday, Oct. 20.
Burn permits are normally required May 10 through October 20 each year and are issued by the Idaho Department of Lands (IDL).
Idaho law requires any person planning to burn outside city limits within Idaho, including crop residue burning, to obtain a state burn permit during the closed period.
READ MORE
Idaho closed burning season ending
Lewiston Tribune, 10-14-23
Idaho’s closed fire season that requires burn permits will close Oct. 20, the Idaho Department of Lands announced Friday.
The burn permit season started May 12 and required that any person planning to burn outside city limits in Idaho, including crop residue burning, must obtain a state burn permit during the closed period.
Josh Harvey, fire management officer for the department, said although obtaining a burn permit after the closed season ends is not required, “there are good reasons to voluntarily apply for the free permit. No matter the time of year, anyone starting a fire is responsible for that fire until it is out. If your fire gets away, you can be held liable for any property damages and for fire suppression costs.”
Idaho Department of Lands reminds community of mandatory burn permits until October 20th
KLEW, 10-13-23
LEWISTON, Idaho - The Idaho Department of Lands wants to remind the community that burn permits are needed until October 20th.
The free burn permits are required by law for those that are planning to burn outside city limits within the state.
The permits are required from May 10th to October 20th, due to the higher risk of fires
“The period that burn permits are required, that May 10th to October 20th, just happens to span some of the most hazardous times of year for fire risk. So, with the idea that burn permits are required it allows the state and local governments that we work with to help set the perimeter under which people may burn, which in turn helps protect those communities from catastrophic wildfire,” Policy and Communications Chief Scott Phillips said.
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*Sarah Loop Fire*- Idaho Land Leaders Summit
Posted October 19, 2023
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On August 15, 2023, the Sarah Loop Fire started near Athol among homes built in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI). IDL’s aggressive response and saved many homes from destruction. This tour stop recapped the fire from its point of ignition through containment and encouraged discussions about the challenges of fighting fire in the WUI, the impact of maintained vs. unmaintained properties on fire behavior and the crucial need for air support for fire suppression. There was also discussion about how IDL’s Shared Stewardship Program helps forest landowners conduct fuel treatments, and how the agency's fire prevention efforts help promote personal responsibility for those who live in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI).
This week we are featuring highlights from the Idaho Land Leaders Summit in northern Idaho this fall. State and local elected officials along with Idaho forest products industry representatives were immersed in forestry and fire issues important to Idaho, local governments and industry.
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FPAC Meeting
Posted October 19, 2023
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The Idaho Department of Lands Director is seeking nominations for two positions for the Idaho Forest Practices Advisory Committee (FPAC). Terms for the General Public Representative At-Large and General Public Representative North positions end December 31, 2023. Nominations for these three-year positions (2024-2026) will close October 31, 2023.
Learn more in our news release: https://www.idl.idaho.gov/.../idl-seeks-nominations-for.../
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