Conservation Northwest

Wildfires and wildlife Keeping the Northwest wild Winter 2015 9 embracing fire's natural role hoW To MANAGE For ThE FUTUrE? Jen Watkins Conservation associate, jen@conservationnw.org The ecological relationship between forests and natural disturbances like fire, insects, disease, and wind events are as old as the hills. Fire and other distur- bances create and maintain conditions that have allowed rich, ecologically di- verse forests to develop on Western landscapes over many centuries. As we began to manage our forests in the nineteenth century, these natural disturbances were intensively controlled to meet societal needs and desires. We fought wildfire with an unyielding pas- sion and, in doing so, we disrupted this dynamic, natural relationship. We re- placed the complexity, which provided ecosystem resilience, with simplified habitat conditions that can facilitate and exacerbate the spread of fire and other disturbance events. Add to this complex- ity the modern day challenge of a chang- ing climate and it is time for a paradigm shi in how we manage forests and fires. In 2008, our executive director, Mitch Friedman, spoke to a gathering of U.S. Forest Service leaders in White- fish, Montana, laying out what he called a "Restoration Marshall Plan" for our national forests that would bring peo- ple together in redefining how we view and manage forests. "e Marshall Plan worked to bring common purpose and rebuild Europe, which is the lesson we must extend to our forests," said Mitch. In the following years, our national forest team has been on the ground throughout Washington State imple- menting this vision with our partners, in- cluding the Forest Service. We have seen notable progress in this effort, including the 2010 Forest Restoration Strateg y for the Okanogan-Wenatchee National For- est which lays out an unprecedented vi- sion and paradigm shi on four million acres in the east Cascades. Henceforth, management actions are geared toward ecological restoration, with success measured in acres treated rather than board feet extracted for lumber. Since fires operate at large spa- tial scales, landscape analysis is used to identify forest patterns and contrast them against historic patterns. Land- scape analyses incorporate fire behavior, wildlife habitat, connectivity, and other factors to help inform decisions about prioritizing management actions that re- store landscape vegetation patterns that were historically shaped by fire. In those priority areas, stand level management actions are designed to restore popula- tions of large old fire tolerant species, like Douglas-fir, ponderosa pine, and western larch. Road networks are also evaluated to identify segments that are dumping sediment into rivers or caus- ing extreme changes in stream volume by channeling water too quickly from slopes into streams. ose segments can be targeted for decommissioning. More and more, including in this newsletter, we're hearing from forest and fire officials that perceptions of forest management and wildfire are shiing. No longer just a catastrophe that must be promptly stomped out, fire must be seen as an innate and desirable aspect of the natural landscape, as much creator as transformer. ough protections for property and human safety remain paramount con- cerns, fire in the backcountry must be seen as a beneficial agent of change and renewal and managed as such. In fire- prone eastern Washington, this man- agement will include: thinning forests to remove smaller trees that have grown in the absence of fire in places like the Little Naches watershed; reducing fuels in strategic locations adjacent to spotted owl habitat in areas such as Blewett Pass; reintroducing fire through prescribed burns north of Tonasket; engaging pri- vate landowners adjacent to public for- ests on fire-safe preventive measures to improve habitat conditions while also protecting property; and working with partners in collaboratives across these landscapes to create shared visions of success and to leverage resources. As climate conditions change, as dramatic fires become more common in areas suffering from archaic for- est practices, and as managing agen- cies and organizations begin the long process towards rebuilding our forest's natural relationships with fire—there's much work to be done at the national, regional, and local levels. Strategies like the selective thinning of choked forests, prescribed fire, and better incentives for wildland and private property manage- ment must become cultural imperatives and ingrained policy. We need to look at the big, landscape-sized picture with all the opportunities and challenges it presents, then make the changes and see them implemented. In Washington State, that opportunity exists. The Chiwaukum Mountains and the landscape of the Chiwaukum Complex Fire from a nearby ridge shortly after the blaze. The challenge of managing fire effectively often lies in being able to see the big picture. Photo: Chase Gunnell "It's time for a paradigm shift in how we manage forests and fires." Wildfire tomorrow

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