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The Great Plains of North America has experienced exponential increases in wildfires since 1985, with a 400% increase in area burned and more than 300% increase in number of wildfires.
In 1963, Omer C. Stewart, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Colorado, wrote an article about the use of fire by aboriginal peoples. This publication was not regarded with much importance when Stewart first presented it, but now his ideas are more respected within the fire community. Stewart focused on the value of learning about the ways indigenous peoples used fire as an ecological management tool. His article “Barriers to Understanding the Influence of Use of Fire by Aborigines on Vegetation” discusses the importance of taking time to learn from aboriginal people about their historical use of fire. In addition, Stewart addresses several reasons that historical information acquired from indigenous people is often disregarded in the realm of science.
Providing Us an Effective Alternative to Traditional AARs
Craig Cunningham, Superintendent of the Ruby Mountain Hotshots, has come up with a new way to structure After Action Reviews (AAR) that is making a positive difference on his crew. Previously, AARs were often vague debriefings which many people said were “broken”, but the new PLOWS structure changes how the AAR is used. The mnemonic PLOWS stands for Plan, Leadership, Obstacles, Weaknesses, and Strengths. By asking questions related to each topic, such as “Was the leader’s intent communicated and sufficient?” a safety and learning focused AAR can be conducted while encouraging crew participation. Some crews have been putting PLOWS into practice and observed that their discussion of the obstacles encountered one day led directly to a plan of improvements for the next. The PLOWS format is said to be working well for crews that have adopted it and influences small changes as well as larger goals for the upcoming season. Cunningham encourages others to try new AAR formats and share what works so others may benefit. Learn how to implement the PLOWS method of AAR on page 6 of the issue of “Two More Chains” linked below.
The Great Plains Fire Science Exchange exists to assist land managers and the fire
community to make sound decisions based on the best possible information.
Through this information sharing process, we hope to strengthen collaboration within the fire
community in the region in addition to having information available for policy makers.
Those who produce fire science as well as those interested in applying the science are all welcome in the Exchange.
Being inclusive, striving to make sure that all relevant partners have the opportunity to be involved.
Serving as neutral science partners, not as an advocate for a certain type of management.
Ensuring activities are end-user driven, both in how they are structured and how they function.
Operating collaboratively, working to foster joint management and science communication.
Striving to be innovative, pursuing new and creative ways to disseminate knowledge.
Working to facilitate the flow of fire science information, the dialogue of new science findings and the needs of resource managers and policymakers.
Research Supporting Sound Decisions
Invasive plant species impact rangelands across the Great Plains, such as this woody plant encroachment in the Nebraska sandhills.
The Great Plains encompasses multiple ecosystems from the tallgrass prairie of the east and shortgrass prairie of the west, to the mixed grass prairie of the north and coastal shrublands of the south. Precipitation, climate, soils, geology and topography all contribute to regional complexity. Fire management practices and concerns vary throughout the region, but include several large scale commonalities such as:
Invasive plant encroachment, due to lack of fire
Regulatory concerns, such as smoke management, burn bans and liability
Use of grassland prescribed fire techniques
Climate change leading to shifting vegetation
A growing wildland-urban interface
Extensive private-land ownership and numerous tribal nations
Fire is an inherent characteristic of grassland ecosystems. We humans share the Great Plains ecosystem with many fire-dependent plants and animals. Becoming “people of fire” involved acknowledging the natural landscape in which we live, with it’s benefits and consequences. Science can provide insight for making the complex decisions that meet the needs of both humans and the ecosystem.
Exchange Guidance
Great Plains Fire Science is guided by a Board of Directors consisting of representatives from a variety of agencies, organizations, specialties, and geographies within the region. The board serves limited terms and provides input via meetings, conference calls, and other media. Duties of the board include:
Promoting accountability, fiscal responsibility, and effectiveness within the GPE
Overseeing and prioritizing GPE-specific goals and objectives
Reviewing annual work plans and budget
Ensureing the program provides useful information that is relevant to issues being confronted by fire practitioners
Identifying strategies for leveraging funds, partnerships, and personnel to best accomplish GPE objectives
Serving as ambassadors for the consortium by soliciting feedback and ideas from ongoing interactions with the fire management and research communities
Great Plains Fire Science Exchange products receive peer review prior to publication. Syntheses receive at least two peer reviews in addition to the editor’s approval. Research briefs are approved by an author of the article being summarized and video product scripts are also peer reviewed prior to publication. Tracking numbers are assigned after final approval. We seek to bring the best quality science products to the fire community we can.
Ben Wheeler has produced a really nice publication on fire breaks. He reviews several construction types and provides criteria for choosing and implementing them.
Considerable prescribed fire research has been conducted on Ashe juniper (Juniperus ashei) and redberry juniper (J. pinchotii) communities in Texas. Prescribed fire is an effective, cost competitive method of controlling juniper. This paper outlines how to safely and efficiently conduct prescribed fires in juniper communities and discusses vegetation responses in the two major juniper types found in Texas.
The fire ecology program for the Central Great Plains region, embedded within the Heartland Inventory and Monitoring Network (HTLN), is multifaceted. It serves as an integrating factor among the vital signs projects already in place within HTLN as well as integrating HTLN into the Midwest Region Fire programs.
Sampling methods used are a hybrid of those described in the HTLN vegetation monitoring protocol and the NPS Fire Monitoring Handbook. The fire ecology program has adapted the protocols described in the Fire Monitoring Handbook to synchronize with the existing sample site array established by HTLN. In this way, both short-term fire ecology data and long-term vegetation monitoring data are collected in a complementary fashion
The workshop held on March 18-19, 2014 was developed to share current knowledge, technical information, practical management information, and provide training opportunities for private local, federal and state participants that either manage land or work with land managers.