Burnt structure and vehicles parked on a property destroyed June 2, Las Vegas, NM, near Hermites Peak Canyon Fire.
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Burnt structure and vehicles parked on a property destroyed June 2, Las Vegas, NM, near Hermites Peak Canyon Fire.
Images of Mario Tama / Getty
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (GAO) is launching an investigation into the wildfires in the United States, which caused the largest wildfire in New Mexico.
GAO is investigating arson policies regulated by the Forest Service and other federal land agencies.
On May 20, USFS Chief of Staff Randy Moore suspended a 90-day safety assessment of ground fires. New Mexico fires burn more than 340,000 acres[340,000 ha]
But many fire ecologists and forest experts warn that this “momentary” is exacerbating the risk of wildfires. Critics have merely hidden the agency’s dangerous, outdated and problematic intentional fire and fire prevention measures, which have failed to adapt to climate change and mega droughts.
“Many of the planning tools that firefighters rely on for planning are built under the current climate,” said biologist and professor Matthew Hurtte, who studies climate change, wildfires and forest ecology. New Mexico. “That’s a system problem,” he says.
Controlled wildlife is one of the most important firefighters in the wild, helping to reduce the risk of wildfires and reverse centuries-old firefighting policies that have exacerbated wildfires, which are now devastating large parts of the West.
Climate change makes controlled fires more urgent and dangerous
Hurtew and other forest services – and other fire agencies – continue to ignore climate change in decision-making processes, despite scientific evidence and the agency’s own goal of reducing dangerously large amounts of built-up fuel in Western forests.
“We’ve seen tremendous changes in climate conditions, especially here in the Southwest, but in many western US states, and we need to develop new tools to address these persistent drying trends. In a very hot and very dry climate,” Hurte said.
The recent release of the New Mexico Forest Service only highlights those criticisms, as it is a remarkable remark that the agency did not take into account climate change when it deliberately burned during a historic drought.
Several sections of the report emphasize the point, however, that firefighters are unaware that it is being prepared in “more severe conditions than usual.” And it is important to have a better understanding of “long-term droughts and climatic conditions and short-term climates”.
“It looks amazing,” fire engineer Timothy Ingalsbe told NPR here and now. “We should never make excuses because we have not been able to include weather conditions and weather information in our fire management practices. It is only a matter of time,” he said. Ethics and Ecology. “I understand why people get upset.” The dog ate my homework.
Man-made climate change is leading to more droughts, worse weather, and more droughts. That quickly converts live plants into fuel and makes the forest’s old-fashioned fuel more explosive.
Ingalsby and other industry experts say the speed and balance of USFS in deliberately implementing fires is dangerously insufficient. The agency hopes to use this 90-day firefight to achieve its goal of making fundamental changes rather than prioritizing wildfires.
“If we convert those resources and subsidies into mandatory incineration, this would be a great help if we have as many employees as possible to control the incineration.”
Oregon Democrat Sen. Ron Widen is seeking answers from federal agencies on wildfire reduction, costs, and priorities.
Sarah Silbiger / Bloomberg in Getty Images
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Oregon Democrat Sen. Ron Widen is seeking answers from federal agencies on wildfire reduction, costs, and priorities.
Sarah Silbiger / Bloomberg in Getty Images
Financial support to prevent fires, not just to fight them
Leading politicians are also desperate. In a letter, U.S. Sen. Ron Weiden, an Oregon Democrat, recently reprimanded U.S. domestic and agricultural secretaries for failing to act quickly to hire more firefighters and increase pay. And he pleaded with them to answer basic questions about the wildfire reduction strategy and the new federal money, even if it was recorded. The Infrastructure Investment and Works Act, passed last November, will provide about $ 8 billion to reduce wildfires and add $ 600 million to firefighters.
“Your units have received this much-needed support. Now, more than six months after we were given this new flexibility, it is time for action,” Weiden wrote.
Firefighters often carry out controlled fires. So there are growing calls for training academies and hired firefighters to improve forest service. Experts have long called for the creation of a professional firefighting team – experts who can move quickly across geographical and political boundaries, as they always do.
“What we as a community need to do is invest enough in training and professional fire management to produce manpower,” said the University of New Mexico. “And you know, you know that will take some structural changes to our federal land administration agencies.”
Theresa May, a representative of the Democratic Republic of New Mexico, called for an investigation into the Office of Public Accountability. Many parts of the district were destroyed by the historic fire.
Fernandez said she was frustrated. “When I read the forest service, they followed their plan.”
She says the GAO study examines policies and procedures and makes recommendations that legislators can put into practice.
Forest fuel levels are now at a “crisis point.”
The Forest Service, in its own reports, is well aware that oil levels are now at a “crisis level”. According to the agency’s design, “Facing the Wildfire Crisis” “The amount of work on the ground is not commensurate with the demand, and nothing less than a change of mindset to protect the country’s western communities.”
“Forest Service and partners need to work together to increase oil treatment by up to four times in the West, including prescribed burns, as well as mechanical and other treatments,” said Randy Moore, head of forest services.
But many in the sector are easily disillusioned with the agency’s small-scale approach to change, as the climate crisis is destroying lives, property and livestock and changing the landscape of the West.
“We all know that federal agency agencies are moving at the speed of a carrier,” said fire expert Barbara Satin-Wolfson. “Yes, we have to be patient. But at the same time, we are all impatient because we know we need to make this change quickly. “
The Federal Agency says at least 234 million hectares of forest is at high risk of wildfires. But over the past decade, controlled burns have received less than 1% of total treatment.
For these and other reasons, experts say, the agency’s firefight is more like a “pause” window that reflects gaps between speech and reality. According to Hurtew, all the peers and forest services assessed in the case are planning to reduce their own hazardous forest fuels at a historic level.
“The question remains. Is the agency ready to create an environment in which its staff, their staff, can work efficiently and are well-supported and well-funded to achieve those goals?”
Trees stop after fire in Hermites Peak / Calf Canyon on June 2 in a special drought in the area, near Mora
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Trees stop after fire in Hermites Peak / Calf Canyon on June 2 in a special drought in the area, near Mora
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New Mexico’s MegaFighter clearly shows that a controlled fire can be dangerous. But ordered fire “escape” is still very rare – less than 1%. And most of them are captured quickly and without extensive damage.
In an open letter to Chief Moore, dozens of forest experts told the Fire Ecosystem to change course and stop it nationally. They argued that doing so would exacerbate fires in areas that were not too dry to burn.
“There is basically a small window for you to carry out the prescribed fire,” said Satinink-Wolfson, a fire consultant at the University of California Cooperative Extension in Central Coast. “I think other places in the country could have continued. And we certainly missed opportunities.”
In addition, forestry services assist or coordinate the fire with several other federal and state agencies, so a stop has a broad national impact, says Satink-Wolfson. “Projects that work in partnership with the Forest Service – and there are a lot of them – will be handled as well.”
Moore, USAF’s chief executive, has repeatedly denied NPR interview requests. Spokesman E. Wade Muhelhoff wrote in an email that those who refused to be interviewed would be used to review and improve the agency’s fire safety protocols. Muhelhoff added: “The devastation caused by the Las Dispensation is a source of great sadness for the agency, which escaped the fire in New Mexico.”
