Jennifer Fawcett

The key goals of SFE are to unite the fire science and natural resource management communities in the Southern U.S. and to increase the awareness, access, understanding and application of wildland fire science into regional natural resource management decisions. Over the last three years, we have focused on refining our core interactive fire science delivery programs, such as workshops, field tours and webinars, in ways that have solidified our role as a key knowledge broker for fire science in the region.

The Southeast Prescribed Fire Initiative will occur in priority areas across all 13 Southern states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Priority habitats will include longleaf pine, shortleaf pine and other fire adapted ecosystems in the Southern region, and priority locations include, but are not limited to, Longleaf Implementation Team (LIT) priority areas and Sentinel Landscapes. The project purpose is to implement the Comprehensive Strategy for Prescribed Fire (which is a comprehensive, regional strategy for increasing prescribed burning in the Southeast), thus ultimately helping to increase the use of prescribed fire across the Southeast. The Strategy represents a consensus among representatives of federal and state agencies (including the U.S. Forest Service, Department of Defense, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and state forestry and wildlife agencies), non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, and the private sector; therefore, these groups will be the primary partners for this project. Major activities will include continued coordination of the SERPPAS Prescribed Fire Working Group, and implementation of several action items within the Prescribed Fire Strategy such as ����������������Learn & Burn��������������� field days for private landowners, and support and promotion of Prescribed Burn Associations (PBAs) and ����������������Fire Festivals.��������������� Outcomes include increased use of and support for prescribed fire.

Managing fire adapted species, such as longleaf and shortleaf pine, properly with prescribed fire not only helps restore the ecosystems, but yields associated benefits such as reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire, thereby protecting air quality, and improving wildlife habitat for game, at- risk, and endangered species. The Comprehensive Strategy for Prescribed Fire was written to fulfill the Southeast Regional Partnership for Planning and Sustainability������������������s (SERPPAS) Strategic Action Plan goal of developing a comprehensive, regional strategy for increasing prescribed burning in the Southeast. NCSU Extension will continue to effectively implement the Prescribed Fire Strategy through coordination, outreach, and education. NCSU Extension will work with the SERPPAS Prescribed Fire Work Group, the Southern Group of State Fire Chiefs, the Environmental Protection Agency, state air quality representatives, the Coalition of Prescribed Fire Councils, or others to minimize local smoke impacts on air quality and public health and safety and maximize coordination between air and fire communities.

The Southeast leads the nation in applying prescribed fire to millions of acres each year, much of which is on private lands. The Southeast also has the most land area in the Wildland Urban Interface, putting numerous communities at risk from wildfire. Prescribed fire helps lower the risk of catastrophic wildfires and promotes ecosystem services in fire-dependent landscapes. However, climate change, growing populations, and development are increasingly complicating the use of prescribed fire to accomplish these objectives. Surveys of Extension professionals indicate wildland fire information is a pressing need. Given these circumstances, Extension professionals must be prepared to serve constituents������������������ needs related to wildland fire. This can be challenging, particularly when Extension professionals������������������ primary responsibilities and expertise lie elsewhere. Moreover, Extension professionals������������������ needs relative to wildland fire can vary greatly according to the objectives and needs of constituents. This project will equip Southern Extension professionals to understand and serve constituents������������������ needs related to wildland fire and connect them to local professionals that can offer more expertise. An online course will be developed, that will address needs identified in a previously conducted needs assessment and based on the expertise of the authors. In addition, training programs will be held in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida, at a minimum, to facilitate networking between Extension professionals and local wildland fire experts and reinforce concepts related to wildland fire, and Extension professionals will be enabled to assist with the creation of community-based Prescribed Burn Associations. Since the need for Extension to address wildland fire issues spans the nation, this project will be replicable in other states and regions.

The Women-in-Fire Training Exchange (WTREX) is a two-week prescribed fire training that will take place in North Carolina in 2023. WTREX is dedicated to evolving the fire culture through the empowerment and advancement of women, as well as bringing awareness to the value of diversity in the workforce. With an inclusive approach that engages fire practitioners of all genders and backgrounds, the WTREX provides rare training opportunities, mentorship, awareness, and social connections. We propose to assist with the logistics and organization of this event. The PI, Jennifer Fawcett, has played a role on the Incident Management Team for this event since 2016, and is uniquely qualified to serve in this capacity.

This project will increase capacity for prescribed fire and wildfire risk reduction on private forests and rural communities in the Southern Blue Ridge (SBR) region of western North Carolina (NC) by engaging private landowners and coordinating a prescribed burn association (PBA). The SBR-PBA will decrease barriers to private lands burning to restore fire-adapted ecosystems and improve community resilience.

The Southeast Prescribed Fire Initiative will occur in priority areas across all 13 Southern states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Priority habitats will include longleaf pine, shortleaf pine and other fire adapted ecosystems in the Southern region, and priority locations include, but are not limited to, Longleaf Implementation Team (LIT) priority areas and Sentinel Landscapes. The project purpose is to implement the Comprehensive Strategy for Prescribed Fire (which is a comprehensive, regional strategy for increasing prescribed burning in the Southeast), thus ultimately helping to increase the use of prescribed fire across the Southeast. The Strategy represents a consensus among representatives of federal and state agencies (including the U.S. Forest Service, Department of Defense, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and state forestry and wildlife agencies), non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, and the private sector; therefore, these groups will be the primary partners for this project. Major activities will include continued coordination of the SERPPAS Prescribed Fire Working Group, and implementation of several action items within the Prescribed Fire Strategy such as ����������������Learn & Burn��������������� field days for private landowners, and support and promotion of Prescribed Burn Associations (PBAs) and ����������������Fire Festivals.��������������� Outcomes include increased use of and support for prescribed fire.

The Work Group will continue to focus on training, smoke management/air quality, liability and resources priorities. These priorities coalesce with challenges noted in the Coalition of Prescribed Fire Council Survey Report (2012), support the effort to increase longleaf pine as noted in America������������������s Longleaf Restoration Initiative Strategic Priorities and Actions 2013-2015 (2013), and connect with the Cohesive Strategy (The National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy 2013) and Regional Action Plan (2013).

This is an agreement between NCSU and NRCS that will allow NCSU to continue implementation of the Prescribed Fire Strategy. This work will include research, outreach, education, and training to ensure successful and timely implementation of some of the prescribed fire work group������������������s priorities such as to build capacity for prescribed burning on private lands and to decrease liability concerns. These priorities coalesce with challenges noted in the 2015 National Prescribed Fire Use Survey (Melvin, 2016), support the effort to increase longleaf pine as noted in America������������������s Longleaf Restoration Initiative Strategic Priorities and Actions 2016-2018 (2016), and connect with the congressionally-mandated National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy (2013) and Southeast Regional Action Plan (2013). This work will allow landowners and consultants to gain the hands-on experience needed in order to conduct burning on their land, thereby reducing the amount of modified NRCS contracts for prescribed burning.

Longleaf pine is a fire-dependent species. Managing it properly with prescribed fire not only helps restore longleaf ecosystems, but yields associated benefits such as reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire, thereby protecting air quality, and improving wildlife habitat for game, at-risk, and endangered species. Such benefits enhance natural, economic, and human resources, as well as national security. The Comprehensive Strategy for Prescribed Fire to Restore Longleaf Pine in the Southeast (also referred to as the Prescribed Fire Strategy) was written to fulfill the Southeast Regional Partnership for Planning and Sustainability������������������s (SERPPAS) Strategic Action Plan goal of developing a comprehensive, regional strategy for increasing prescribed burning in the Southeast (Burke et al. 2012). Over the past three years, the Regional Readiness Cooperative, a partnership between North Carolina State University (NCSU) and Texas A&M University, has led coordination and outreach support for the SERPPAS Prescribed Fire Work Group (Prescribed Fire Work Group). Work has been focused on training, liability, smoke management/air quality, and prescribed fire resources. Over the next year, the Prescribed Fire Work Group will continue to focus on training, smoke management/air quality, liability and resources. These priority goals coalesce with challenges noted in the National Prescribed Fire Use Survey (2012), support the effort to increase longleaf pine as noted in America������������������s Longleaf Restoration Initiative Strategic Priorities and Actions 2013-2015 (2013), and connect with the Cohesive Strategy (The National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy 2013) and Regional Action Plan (2013). For 2015, NCSU proposes to continue to lead outreach efforts for the Prescribed Fire Work Group with financial support from US Forest Service. With the $100,000 grant the following deliverables will be provided: 3 prescribed fire workshops in the field, 3 prescribed burn association workshops, a white paper and webinar on prescribed fire liability statistics, the coordination of a Prescribed Fire Summit, and 1 Training Exchange. With financial support the Prescribed Fire Work Group is able to continue implementing the Prescribed Fire Strategy. Outreach efforts such as workshops, webinars, and summits will put more prescribed fire on the ground in support of longleaf pine and other fire-dependent ecosystems, which will enhance forested habitats and decrease opportunities for catastrophic wildfire.