QNFM Fuels Prevention

Main Menu

Welcome to Quinault Nation's Fuels / Prevention Page!

Work Links

Home		Crew Locations
Quinault Nation	The Quinault Fire Management Section is responsible for the Fuels program on the reservation.	QIN Staff Locations
Mission Statement	This program does reduction projects including prescribed burning and mechanical treatment.	National Sit Report
Staff		Fire Weather
Employment	The prescribed burning projects are primarily to reduce activity fuels that are produced from logging. Slash accumulation
Outdoor Burning	on logging sites is burned to reduce hazard fuel conditions and also to create tree-planting spots for forest regeneration.
Fire Trainings	Both pile and broadcast burning methods are implemented. Burning has also been done for research purposes to promote
Station & Apparatus	bear grass regeneration. A similar project for prescribed burning to research fire effects to improve wildlife habitat on prairies
Photo Album	on prairies is currently in planning stages.
Links
	Mechanical treatment on the reservation has been done through 2 projects. The first is a wildland urban interface defensible	Complete Contact Information
	space buffer. This buffer was a vegetation clearing, thinning, and limbing done around the communities of Taholah, Queets,
	Amanda Park, Santiago Estates, and Moclips Subdivision. A 6-person crew using chain saws created the defensible space
	of 100 feet around structures. The second project is a hazard fuels reduction that involves cutting brush along forest roads
	with a Slashbuster. This widens the fuel break that a road can be used for. Both of these projects are implemented as part
	of the National Fire Plan in cooperation with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

PREVENTION

	Quinault Fire Management has an active prevention program. Elements of this program include Smokey Bear visits to
	3rd graders to educate them on fire prevention. Smokey is also a regular to the Taholah Days parade. Fire Management
	is also partnering with Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources to get the Firewise message to the local communities.
	Contact the Assistant Fire Management Officer at extension 387 to learn more about wildfire prevention, schedule a Smokey
	visit and receive information on ways to make your home fire safe.

WILDFIRE AND YOU

	An average of 106,400 wildfires break out each year. An average of 4,083,347 acres are consumed. 9 out of 10 are started by people like you.

	Although most of us have no intention of setting in motion the forces which could destroy hundreds of homes, thousands
	of lives, and millions of acres of forest, each year we learn of devastating wildfires caused by careless behavior. As people
	move out of urban areas to suburban and semirural areas, as our population continues to grow, and as more people set aside
	time for outdoor leisure activities, our settlement and use of wildlands has also increased. These factors have led to a unique
	problem, an area known as the wildland-urban interface, or I-Zone, where a significant human presence coexists uneasily with
	areas of fire-prone forest, brush, and grassland vegetation. But what habits and uninformed decisions are we taking to these
	environments? Can we be trusted in America's wildlands?

	Some burning facts:

	* Wildfire consumes on average over 4,083,347 acres in the US alone.
	* Each year, fire kills more Americans than all natural disasters combined.
	* Wildfire increases as more homes are built in and around forested areas.
	* Friction from improperly adjusted brakes and poorly lubricated bearings can generate enough heat to ignite your car or flammable vegetation.
	* 1995 there were 9,974 wildfires caused by lightning and 120,045 wildfires caused by human error.
	* In 2000, 7.5 million acres burned in the U.S. This is an area roughly equal to the size of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Delaware combined.

WHAT IS A WILDFIRE?

	Wildfire is one of the most destructive natural forces known to mankind. While sometimes caused by lightning, nine out of
	ten wildfires are human-caused. Put simply, "wildfire" is the term applied to any unwanted and unplanned fire burning in
	forest, shrub or grass.


	The current increase in instances of wildfire can be explained by four key factors:

	1. Past fire suppression policies, including one of "total suppression," which allowed for the accumulation of fuel in the form
	of fallen leaves, branches, and excessive plant overgrowth in forest and wildland areas

	2. Increasingly dry, hot weather.

	3. Changing weather patterns across the US.

	4. Increased residental development in the wildland-urban interface.

	Prescribed Fires are Good Fires.

	As one of the most important natural agents of change, fire plays a vital role in maintaining healthy ecosystems. Prescribed
	fire reintroduces the beneficial effects of fire into an ecosystem, producing the kinds of vegetation and landscapes we want,
	and reducing the hazard of catastrophic wildfire caused by excessive fuel buildup.

	Wildfires are Bad Fires.

	They destroy wilderness, property, and lives. As more homes are built in and around forested areas, and as more people
	take to our country's wildland areas, wildfires are also on the rise. Through discarded smoking products, sparks from
	equipment in operation, arced powerlines, campfires, arson, debris burning and other careless means, wildfires are often
	ignited, and its fires such as these - unplanned, uncontrolled and unnecessary - that could be most easily prevented.

	OUTDOOR PRECAUTIONS

	When planning a trip to an Outdoor area, you should first develop an Outdoor Safety Trip Plan to make sure you are
	traveling to a safe environment, and that you are prepared with the proper equipment to help keep the environment
	free of accidental wildfire.

	1. Know your area.
	It is important to be familiar with the area you are traveling to - if camping, you should make sure to plan an escape route
	should you need to evacuate the area.

	2. Develop a checklist.
	By following a few simple rules and reminders, you can help keep our outdoor park and woodland areas safe.

	3. Are fire or travel restrictions in effect?
	Call the local Fire Department, Forest Service, BLM, State or other Federal Agency to make sure the area
	you are traveling to is restriction-free.

	4. Weather Predictions.
	If you are traveling during fire season, it is best to avoid potentially dangerous weather patterns.

	5. Select your campsite wisely.
	You should always use existing campsites and established fire rings when camping or building a fire.