California Fire Portal

Consider submitting an abstract to this session, organized by Carly Philllips, Brendan Rogers, and Peter Frumhoff. Abstracts are due July 31. The AGU fall meeting is December 9-13 in San Francisco.
As climate change increases the frequency and intensity of wildfires, wildfires themselves exacerbate climate change through the release of greenhouse gases and black carbon. Together with expanding populations, this reinforcing cycle also leads to destruction of critical infrastructure, negative health outcomes from smoke, and loss of life. Fire management, however, has the potential to protect carbon, ecosystems, and human well-being, and minimize feedbacks to climate change and thus the intensification of wildfires. The aim of this session is to explore how fire management can interrupt this wildfire cycle, and reduce the impacts of climate change while minimizing the consequences of carbon loss. Organizers encourage abstracts that address interactions between wildfire science, public health, and climate policy, with an emphasis on those that address (1) feedbacks between wildfires and climate change, (2) impacts of wildfire on public health and (3) fire management as a strategy to limit atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations.

The California Fish and Game Journal is looking for submissions around their next special issue: “Effects of Fire on California’s Natural Resources.” The issue will focus on how fire or fire-related management activities may impact, positively or negatively, the state’s fish, wildlife, and plant resources.

The Vale Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking a group of career-focused women and other individuals to become temporary seasonal employees and/or on-call wildland firefighters for the 2020 fire season. Seasonal and on-call positions will provide support to wildland fire operations over the summer. This experience can help open avenues to future employment and career advancement in the Fire Service. If selected for this development program, the first assignment will be to participate and complete the Women in Fire Boot Camp. The Boot Camp will provide comprehensive Wildland Fire Training and orientation. Upon successfully completing this training, each participant will be certified for wildland firefighting.

The intent of the Boot Camp is to deliver basic firefighting training and an introduction to fire culture. Individuals completing this training will be provided opportunities to apply for seasonal employment and will be positioned to apply for seasonal and Casual Hires with the Fire Service immediately following this training. The plan for this year’s Boot Camp is to spend two weekends in October at a remote duty station on the Vale District. At this duty station participants will learn basics about physical fitness, dietary needs, basic outdoor camping and field skills, along with firefighter training. Training will be held October 11-13 and October 18-20, 2019, in eastern Oregon. To receive a certificate, you must attend both weekend sessions and complete all required training.

Application Deadline: September 6, 2019
Selection/Notification: September 13, 2019

Employer: The Davey Tree Expert Company

Location: Northern and Central California (San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz, Monterey, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Marin, and Napa Counties)

Starting Date: Immediately

What you’ll do:

• Primarily work in high fire risk areas, with work focused on protecting communities from the risk of wildfire.
• Successfully contribute to all aspects of vegetation management planning and analysis.
• Utilize innovative technology and practices to help major utility providers deliver safe and reliable power.
• Inspect and assess utility Rights of Way for vegetation requiring pruning or removal to reduce wildfire risk associated with overhead conductors.
• Inspect and assess vegetation to reduce wildfire risk.
• Work with landowners on fuel reduction and fuel modification.
• Assess terrain, habitat and environmental conditions.
• Coordinate with project managers, planners, and vegetation crews to achieve goals.
• Identify tree and brush control work and protection zone recommendations.
• Assist in problem analysis and development of compliance strategies with limited direct supervision or direction.
• Assist in the development of and conducting of environmental compliance training.
• Coordinate with Project Managers, Planners, and Vegetation Crews to create customized solutions.

Tall Timbers Wildland Fire Science Program has received Department of Defense funding from the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program to characterize multiscale feedbacks between forest structure, fire behavior and fire effects. This work seeks to advance more mechanistic predictions of fire effects through the application and advancement of coupled fire-atmospheric modeling to empirical study of surface fire regimes. The project is field-intensive and includes intensive fire-line experimentation campaigns using a variety of spatial and temporal monitoring techniques. This post-doctoral fellowship has up to 3.5 years of funding to lead integration efforts of multidisciplinary empirical fire behavior and forest measurements. The position will oversee data management, analysis, and data integration of 3D fuel characterization, fire behavior, fire effects, and 3D flows. The position will also facilitate the transfer of pre- and post-burn datasets to fire behavior modeling teams at Los Alamos National Laboratory and Colorado State University. The incumbent will play a key role in advancing our understanding of heat transfer to vegetation during fire and in improving post fire effects prediction. Primary duties are to assist the Wildland Fire Scientist and project collaborators with implementation of the study plan, help supervise field data acquisition, facilitate data transfer among participating organizations, and lead spatially explicit analysis of energy transfer and resulting fire effects. Other duties range from publication writing and preparation for submission to peer-reviewed journals, administering project management software, budget reporting, and student advisement.

The Landscape Research Analyst supports TWS's science team in bringing spatial analysis to its conservation programs. The position has 3 primary responsibilities: conducting spatial analyses to support scientific research, applying analytical tools in priority landscapes, and fulfilling requests for quick-turnaround maps and analysis. This is an exceptional opportunity for a conservation science professional to apply their spatial analysis expertise to conservation work throughout the country.

The analyst position is part of the research team and works collaboratively with staff across departments. The position supports geospatial analysis to identify and deepen our understanding of conservation priorities and impacts of energy development and climate change by 1) conducting spatial analysis and modeling with raster and vector data, 2) acquiring, organizing, and developing spatial and tabular databases, 3) disseminating results as maps and tabular data, and 4) conveying an understanding of spatial analyses and results through oral communication, written reports, scientific publications, and other products. Analyses include, but are not limited to, quantifying relationships between diverse ecological or social data, conducting analyses of ecosystem representation and landscape connectivity, and assisting ecologists in the development and application of geospatial models.

It's time for the 2019 award nominations!

The Association for Fire Ecology (AFE) is accepting nominations for 2019 Lifetime Achievement Awards and Student Excellence Awards. The awards will be presented at the 8th International Fire Ecology and Management Congress in Tucson, Arizona this November.

Lifetime Achievement Awards in Fire Ecology and Management

These awards are presented to individuals who have made a significant contribution to fire ecology and management, and who have inspired and mentored a generation of fire ecologists. Their contributions may be in research, management, teaching, service, outreach, or a combination of these areas. Lifetime Achievement Awards are given in three categories:

• Biswell Award: Awarded to individuals who primarily work in ecosystems found in western United States or in similar ecosystems internationally. This award is named after Harold Biswell, longtime faculty member at the University of California-Berkeley.
• Stoddard Award: Awarded to individuals who primarily work in ecosystems found in the eastern United States or in similar ecosystems internationally. This award is named after the long-time prescribed fire advocate for longleaf pine management Herbert Stoddard, Sr.
• Wright Award: For those who primarily work in grasslands and shrublands in the United States and internationally. This award is named after Henry Wright of Texas Tech University.

Student Association for Fire Ecology (SAFE) Student Excellence Awards

These awards are given to students who are active members of recognized SAFE chapters and who demonstrate superior academic achievement and involvement in fire related research and activities. AFE presents two awards to students each year:

• Edward Komarek, Sr. Graduate Student Excellence Award: Named after Edward Komerek Sr. (1908-1995), one of the renowned “fathers of fire ecology.”
• Harold Weaver Undergraduate Student Excellence Award: Named after Harold Weaver (1903–1983), a pioneer in the field of fire ecology and ecosystem management.

Any active member of AFE or SAFE can submit a nomination for an AFE Award.

Nominations for 2019 awards are due August 15, 2019; awards will be presented at the 8th International Fire Ecology and Management Congress in Tucson, AZ this November.

The Association for Fire Ecology (AFE) has been awarded the privilege of administering the distribution of the Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP) TREE grant, which is designed to help graduate students travel to present at conferences, symposia, and workshops related to wildland fire science and management.

All registered graduate students in good academic standing in a field related to wildland fire science, ecology, or management in the U.S. are eligible to apply for grants. Depending on costs and the number of applicants, grants may fund all or a portion of estimated travel expenses including transportation, lodging, registration fees, and presentation preparation costs, where applicable. Funds cannot be used for food and incidentals, student stipends, direct research costs, or faculty research/administration costs. Grants will be paid as reimbursements for submitted receipts. 

Grants are limited and competitively awarded, and can only be awarded to current graduate students in the U.S. who are presenting the results of their fire-related research. This grant is for students without other Joint Fire Science Program support.