As 2017 continues to set new records for wildfires, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators recently introduced a bill that would put an end to the practice of fire borrowing. The Wildfire Disaster Funding Act would treat wildfires as natural disasters and reform the way the federal government funds wildfires.
In response, last week USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue attended a briefing session to hear from U.S. Forest Service officials about this year’s efforts to contain wildfires. Joining Perdue were sponsors of the legislation, Sens. Mike Crapo ( R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Jim Risch (R-ID), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
Vicki Christiansen, U.S. Forest Service (USFS) deputy chief of state and private forestry, was on hand to provide details of this year’s dramatic fire season. She explained that when looking at fires there are different levels of preparedness ranging from Level 1-5, which is the highest level of readiness. This year, she said the fire season started early and has resulted in about 49,000 fires across the U.S. She noted that includes all fires across the nation on USFS, Bureau of Land Management, state and private lands.
Christiansen said the number of fires is down slightly but said what is different from previous years is a period of 72 days at Level 5. She said also different from previous years is the number of large complex fires with 10 incidents burning over 100,000 acres each. “We’ve burned 8.4 million acres in America this year; it’s higher than the average you would normally have. That’s the size of the state of Massachusetts.”
Paying for fire suppression quickly reduces available funds and results in a practice known as “fire borrowing” where money is taken from other areas, most often funds that had been set aside for fire suppression efforts. When that money is used up fire mitigation efforts cannot take place.” Recently, wildland fire suppression costs for the fiscal year exceeded $2 billion, making it the most expensive year on record.
Reacting to the discussion, Perdue said, “Functionally, what that means is we have to hold back our preventive measures in order to have that money available for fire suppression so we can’t manage proactively. We have to hoard the money until we see what the fire situation is going to be through the year, which is no way to run an agency.”
Currently agencies base wildland fire suppression budgets on the average costs of the previous 10 years, but as actual costs have increased dramatically in recent years the funding has not kept pace. Christiansen noted, “Wildland fire cost is consuming the Forest Services’ budget.” She then referenced a 2015 report in which the USFS projected that its fire budget would consume two-thirds of the agency’s budget by the year 2025. “Conditions on the ground are worsening, and we are projecting the fire budget to consume two-thirds of our overall budget four years sooner, by the year 2021,” she said.
Christiansen added, “The 10-year average has increased $300 million over the past five years. With this new projection, our models predict the 10-year average will go up $100 million each year. That’s $100 million less that we will have to use for proactive work on the ground. So, the ongoing erosion of our non-fire budget causes an ongoing shift in resources from land management to fire management.”
The problem is not new and similar legislation has been introduced numerous times, but has never gained momentum to get passed. Emphasizing the dire need, Christiansen told those at the hearing, and watching via live-stream that since 2002, appropriations for fire suppression was exceeded in all but four years and fire transfers were initiated nine times. “Transferring these funds to cover the cost of wildfire suppression is very disruptive to other critical work including the work to reduce wildfire risk through prescribed fire, mechanical thinning and other means,” she said.
Perdue noted, “I do believe that the momentum that we have this year is greater than it has been in the past and I think there is a lot concern, as we’ve seen, all of the cameras focus on Harvey and Irma and Maria and the devastation there and we don’t make any light of that. Most people don’t even know there has been a national disaster in the Northwest, particularly from Montana into Washington and California and those areas.”
Risch also spoke to the disaster effect of fires, saying, “Wildfires are a catastrophic event just like an earthquake, hurricane, or tornado. But there is one very big difference—wildfires are at least partially preventable and almost fully manageable.” He added, “If we set aside funds for wildfire prevention ahead of time, we can actually tamper down the destruction. This is what our legislation seeks to accomplish.”
Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives are also looking at fire funding and discussed the issue last Wednesday during a hearing by the House Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. As that group looks to find solutions, Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-AR) stated, “This problem will only intensify unless we act now to expand active science-based management practices.”
House Subcommittee on Federal Lands Chairman Tom McClintock (R-CA) said, “The American people want our forests returned to health. They want the growing scourge of wildfire brought back under control…To achieve these goals will require a dramatic change in current policy. Enactment of the Resilient Federal Forest Act is the first step toward restoring sound, rational and scientific management of our national forests.”
Westerman called for action from all Washington, D.C. lawmakers, saying, “Active forest management is needed to stop the spread of catastrophic wildfires. Irreplaceable natural resources and human lives are at stake, and we must focus on the immediate solutions available. It is time for members of both parties in the House and Senate to work together to pass the Resilient Federal Forests Act.”
“This has been a tremendous fire season, said Perdue. “While we can’t stop these wildfires, we know we can be prepared in a much better way.”— Rae Price, WLJ editor
