WASHINGTON (March 6, 2008) - The Wilderness Society commended a bill introduced in the House on Thursday that's intended to significantly change the way the federal government funds wildfire suppression. The bill would establish a new fund the Forest Service could use to suppress certain kinds of particularly costly fires. This would reduce the burden placed on the agency by the ever-increasing costs associated with fighting fires, lessening the amount of its budget it has to take away from other functions ranging from campground maintenance to managing wildlife habitat.
The bill is sponsored by House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rep. Nick Rahall II (D-W. Va.); Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), chairman of the National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee; and Rep. Norm Dicks (D-Wash.), chairman of the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies of the House Appropriations Committee.
"With the costs of suppression continuing to skyrocket, topping out at over $1 billion per year for five of the last seven years, something has to change," said Jaelith Hall-Rivera, a wildfire policy analyst at The Wilderness Society. "A change in the way we think about federal fire management is critical, and funding suppression differently, as this bill proposes, is a key step in the right direction."
Hall-Rivera added, however, that The Federal Land Assistance, Management and Enhancement Act (FLAME) is only part of the solution to fire suppression cost issues.
"We also need to continue to focus on managing fire cost-effectively, and probably most importantly, restoring our forests to a state where fire can once again play its natural role," she said.
Below is background on the bill, an overview of the problems caused by growing fire costs, and discussion of effective/efficient fire management policy.
About TWS: The Wilderness Society's mission is to protect wilderness and inspire Americans to care for our wild places. Visit www.wilderness.org for more information.
Click here read more about what the House bill proposes, why a change is necessary, fire cost drivers, and other fire suppression cost solutions.
