California Fire Portal

We are looking for a new team member to manage projects to improve wildfire resiliency and forest health, including vegetation management for defensible space for properties and emergency evacuation/access routes, and coordinating the Fire Safe Council for San Mateo County. The position is full-time at 40 hours per week. It is grant dependent, currently funded through 2020 with the intent to secure ongoing funding. The CPM will report to the Natural Resource Specialist and will work with other staff as needed to ensure the successful implementation of projects.  The CPM will work closely with a broad array of partner organizations, government agency staff, and public and private landowners.  It is expected that a new Conservation Project Coordinator will be hired to assist the CPM with program activities.

The purpose of the grant program is to provide funds for pilot projects that: (1) Address emerging forest and rangeland resource issues, (2) Have national or regional relevancy, or (3) Develop new and innovative projects that can be replicated at other institutions.

Who Is Eligible to Apply: 1862 Land-Grant Institutions, 1890 Land-Grant Institutions

Responsibilities:

• Drives engine to fire locations, frequently over unimproved roads.
• Positions engine in appropriate locations in consideration of safety of crew and equipment, and how the equipment can best be used in control and mop-up operations.
• Starts pump engine, primes pump, adjusts engine speed and pump valves, lays hose, and uses appropriate nozzles and nozzle adjustment in effective use of water and additives.
• Has specialized duties such as water handling specialist, fully qualified chain saw operator, or responsible for maintenance of specialized equipment used to respond to wildland urban interface/intermix situations.
• Gathers and considers information on weather data, topography, fuel types, and fire behavior in responding to wildland fire incidents.
• Inventories fuel beds, prepares associated reports, performs hazard fuel reduction projects, monitors burning conditions, piles vegetation debris and acts in assigned positions such as ignition or holding specialist during actual fuel reduction efforts by prescribed fire.
• Performs project work such as road and trail maintenance, fuel bed inventory, habitat improvement, burned area rehabilitation, and miscellaneous equipment and facilities maintenance.
• Assists in the preparation of hazardous fuels treatment plans and burn plans.

Physical Demands: Essential functions require arduous exertion for protracted periods of time such as, but not limited to, extensive running, walking, climbing, kneeling, stooping, pulling hoses, jumping and twisting. Duties involve rigorous field work requiring above average physical performance, endurance and superior conditioning. Work requires prolonged standing, walking over uneven ground, and recurring bending, reaching, lifting and carrying of items weighing over 50 pounds and shared lifting and carrying of heavier items, and similar strenuous activities requiring at least average agility and dexterity. Duties include demands for strenuous activities in emergencies under adverse environmental conditions and over extended periods of time. Operation of some specialized fire equipment can place extended physical stress on employee during fire activities. The duties of this position require that the incumbent meet the arduous level of physical fitness as measured by the current physical fitness testing standards.

Work Environment:  The work is primarily performed in forest and desert environments in steep terrain where surfaces may be extremely uneven, rocky, covered with thick tangled vegetation, smoky conditions, etc. Temperatures commonly exceed 100 degrees F and fall below freezing. Risks include smoke inhalation, fire entrapment, snake or insect bites and stings, exposure to excessive machinery noise, and falling and rolling material. Employee must adjust and cope with exposure to weather elements, dust and smoke, poor bivouac and eating situations under an unpredictable set of circumstances. Employee may be required to live in backcountry camps for extended periods of time. The hazardous nature of the work requires that personal protective equipment be worn (boots, hardhat, gloves, flame resistant clothing, etc.). Work may require travel by light fixed-wing or rotor-wing aircraft.

Specific Responsibilites:

• Serves as the lead for the TRPA Forest and Ecosystem Health program and works with land management agencies to accomplish the basin’s forest health goals.
• Leads the update of Chapter 61 of the TRPA Code of Ordinances to reflect current forestry best management practices.
• EnsuresTRPA policy and regulation are continuously reviewed and updated as needed to meet the needs and goals of the Lake Tahoe Basin.
• Serves as the staff lead for the TRPA Governing Board Forest Health and Wildfire Committee.
• Supports the TRPA Environmental Threshold Update strategic initiative to update the basin-wide standards and goals for vegetation management.
• Plays an active role in the multi-agency Tahoe Fire and Fuels team.
• Represents TRPA and leads interagency teams in the Lake Tahoe West Restoration Partnership.
• Facilitates implementation of the Lake Tahoe Basin Multi-Jurisdictional Fuel Reduction and Wildfire Prevention 10-Year Strategy.
• Serves on the Sierra and Eastside Regional Prioritization Groupand interfaces with the California Forest Management Task Force.
• Assists in environmental review and permitting of forest fuels reductionand ecosystem health projects.
• Seeks funding sources that supports the Forest and Ecosystem Health Program, works collaboratively to submit multi-agency funding application packages and provides grant administration as needed.
• Manages and tracks all EIP performance measure data related to forestry and ecosystem health.
• Works with partners to achieve TRPA regulatory compliance and “thinks outside of the box”on how to streamline processes and meet mutual project goals.
• Proactively looks for collaborative solutions to project implementation challenges and leads strategic program improvements.
• Prepares and presents staff reports to the TRPA Governing Board and a variety of work groups and committees.
• Produces high quality reports for program partners, the public and elected officials.
• Manages and oversees special projects pertaining to the Environmental Improvement Program.

The CNMI Division of Coastal Resources Management (DCRM) is seeking to hire a full-time (40hrs/week) Watershed Coordinator. The Watershed Coordinator’s primary role is to develop and implementwatershed management and restoration projects in the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan, Tinian, and Rota). The Coordinator will focus their work in priority watersheds identified by CNMI natural resource managers and conservation professionals for their unique management challenges and restoration opportunities, which may include native revegetation, stormwater runoff interventions, wildfire mitigation, or mangrove propagation. The Coordinator serves as key personnel and project manager for the CNMI’s Coral Reef Initiative, while also participating in regional and national-level collaborations with NOAA’s Coral Reef Conservation Program and U.S. Coral Reef Task Force. United States citizenship or lawful permanent resident status is required.

Included in this free class:

• A trunk and curriculum containing 40 hands-on activities for teaching about wildland fire science
• Covers physical science of combustion, fire history, succession, and fire effects on plants andanimals
• New curriculum & streamlined materials - just released
• Includes materials on fire use by Native Americans
• Lessons for elementary, middle, and high school levels

When: June 20-21, 2019.

Where: Fire Sciences Lab, Missoula, MT

Proposals for special sessions, workshops and trainings, oral and poster presentations, fire circles, and attached meetings are now being accepted.

Call for Special Sessions ~ Deadline April 1, 2019
Call for Workshops, Trainings, and Courses ~ Deadline April 1, 2019
Call for Oral and Poster Presentations ~ Deadline August 1, 2019 for Oral Presentations and August 30, 2019 for Poster Presentations
Call for Fire Circles ~ Deadline August 1, 2019
Call for Attached Meetings ~ Deadline August 30, 2019

The Prescribed Fire Training Center (PFTC) is a unique program blending maximum field prescribed burning experience with a flexible curriculum of classroom instruction on foundational topics for prescribed fire practitioners.

The PFTC is headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida. Training locations are dispersed throughout Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Attendees will travel to several remote sites during their stay to take advantage of prescribed burning and learning opportunities with a variety of agencies, fuel types, and challenges such as urban interface.
The Southeast is an ideal site for the PFTC due to the year round burning programs of several agencies, broad prescription windows, and the high level of interagency cooperation. During their 20 day tour, individuals should expect to participate in prescribed burns conducted for a variety of objectives. The wildland urban interface is a focus of PFTC, and most participants will have opportunities to conduct burns in interface situations. This variety of field experience with the different prescriptions, planning procedures, and techniques of the various agencies offers an accelerated learning opportunity for the participants.

FY2019 20-Day Sessions:

• January 6, 2019 to January 25, 2019
• February 3, 2019 to February 22, 2019
• March 10, 2019 to March 29, 2019
• April 7, 2019 to April 26, 2019
• June 2, 2019 to June 21, 2019

FY2019 Agency Admin Workshops:

• October 25, 2018 to October 30, 2018
• February 28, 2019 to March 5, 2019