Wenatchee Commissioners Seek Wildfire Funding Boost

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  The Wenatchee-based Chelan County Board of County Commissioners voted on September 8“On Sept. 8, the Board of County Commissioners voted to send a letter to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, and U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier with recommendations and requests related to wildfire firefighting and forest management in Chelan County.”
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  The Chelan County Board of County Commissioners voted to send a letter to federal lawmakers“On Sept. 8, the Board of County Commissioners voted to send a letter to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, and U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier with recommendations and requests related to wildfire firefighting and forest management in Chelan County.”
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  The letter was addressed to Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell“On Sept. 8, the Board of County Commissioners voted to send a letter to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, and U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier with recommendations and requests related to wildfire firefighting and forest management in Chelan County.”
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  The letter was addressed to Representative Kim Schrier“On Sept. 8, the Board of County Commissioners voted to send a letter to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, and U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier with recommendations and requests related to wildfire firefighting and forest management in Chelan County.”
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  The letter emphasizes that Chelan County's forests are 78% federally managed“Federal land ownership in Chelan County is 78%, including Bureau of Land Management, National Parks Service, and US Forest Service (USFS) lands. The USFS lands alone comprise over 70% of the county.”
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  The commissioners state that Chelan County's forests require significantly more fuel treatment investments than current suppression efforts“The level of investment in fuel treatments must be many-fold greater than what it is and actually more than that of suppression in order to overtake the current work of damaging wildfires.”
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  The commissioners state that forest treatments must be prioritized over suppression to reduce wildfire spread“The level of investment in fuel treatments must be many-fold greater than what it is and actually more than that of suppression in order to overtake the current work of damaging wildfires.”
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  The commissioners state that strategic thinning is needed to reduce wildfire spread“The level of investment in fuel treatments must be many-fold greater than what it is and actually more than that of suppression in order to overtake the current work of damaging wildfires. Congress must drastically increase the pace, scale, and investments in these forest treatments, removing the overabundance of smaller trees, clearing underbrush, and applying prescribed fire following the strategic thinning.”
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  The commissioners state that prescribed fire is needed to reduce wildfire spread“The level of investment in fuel treatments must be many-fold greater than what it is and actually more than that of suppression in order to overtake the current work of damaging wildfires. Congress must drastically increase the pace, scale, and investments in these forest treatments, removing the overabundance of smaller trees, clearing underbrush, and applying prescribed fire following the strategic thinning.”
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  The commissioners state that incentivized sawmilling is needed to reduce wildfire spread“To accomplish this work, efficient sawmilling is necessary and must be incentivized in these fire-prone areas.”
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  The commissioners request increased air assets for initial attack response“Increase air assets and firefighting personnel for initial attacks: Until our landscapes can accept active fire, something they used to withstand, a swift and overwhelming initial attack is much needed soon after wildfires start. This is best accomplished immediately and no later than the first 24 hours. Simply put, the western United States – especially Washington – needs more air resources for initial attack along with trained fulltime and rapidly-deployed firefighting personnel.”
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  The commissioners request increased firefighting personnel for initial attack response“Increase air assets and firefighting personnel for initial attacks: Until our landscapes can accept active fire, something they used to withstand, a swift and overwhelming initial attack is much needed soon after wildfires start. This is best accomplished immediately and no later than the first 24 hours. Simply put, the western United States – especially Washington – needs more air resources for initial attack along with trained fulltime and rapidly-deployed firefighting personnel.”
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  The commissioners note that fires not extinguished within 24 hours become more difficult to contain“Until our landscapes can accept active fire, something they used to withstand, a swift and overwhelming initial attack is much needed soon after wildfires start. This is best accomplished immediately and no later than the first 24 hours. Simply put, the western United States – especially Washington – needs more air resources for initial attack along with trained fulltime and rapidly-deployed firefighting personnel. If fires are not extinguished quickly, the fires spread and are “managed” until extinguished by season-ending rain and snow events.”
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  The commissioners call for postfire mitigation“Postfire mitigation and restoration: A major challenge of living in fire-prone areas is the impact large-scale wildfires have in the years after an event, both economically and on the landscape. Postfire, the dead and downed trees are still a major problem. They fall down and dry out, adding new fuel to the ground for the next fire and creating additional hazards. Immediately after wildfires, the dead trees must also be removed within the first year or two so their value to a purchaser remains. This will help avoid exacerbating future impacts. After postfire restorative treatments, severely burned areas must be replanted at densities that properly anticipate future fires and how they would naturally burn in the landscape.”
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  The commissioners call for prompt removal of dead trees within the first year after fires“Immediately after wildfires, the dead trees must also be removed within the first year or two so their value to a purchaser remains.”
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  The commissioners call for prompt removal of dead trees to prevent additional fuel buildup“Immediately after wildfires, the dead trees must also be removed within the first year or two so their value to a purchaser remains. This will help avoid exacerbating future impacts.”