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FUSEE members are in the news! Past articles can be read in the archives.
December 31
Records show a disconnect between embattled fire crew and commanders in Station fire
Los Angeles Times
As walls of flame from the massive Station blaze closed in on their remote compound, the mission of the crews at Fire Camp 16 suddenly changed from protecting their corner of the Angeles National Forest to saving their own lives.
December 26
Fire seasons: 'Something's changing here'
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
The major Inland Empire wildfires of the first decade of the century all occurred in the late summer and early fall - and especially in October.
December 25
Our View: The fire next time
Pasadena Star-News
It's not that we necessarily think a congressional investigation will fully uncover what went wrong in the early fight against the Station Fire in the San Gabriel Mountains.
December 24
Fire probe intensifies
La Canada Valley Sun
Fallout surrounding firefighting tactics used during the Station fire intensified this week as Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) joined Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich in calling for a federal investigation.
December 23
Forest Service Under Fire:
Environmental Groups Sue Over Prescribed Burns
Santa Barbara Independent
Los Padres National Forest Watch — an environmental watchdog group — in concert with the research-oriented California Chaparral Institute, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Forest Service last week. The groups claim there is a lack of opportunity for public input into the USFS’s decision making process for land-management policy. More specifically, they are focusing on the Tepusquet Fuels Treatment Project, a prescribed burn program the two groups maintain was approved without an environmental analysis or public hearings.
Public Utilities Commission officials send back wildfire costs plan
The Desert Sun
Officials from the California Public Utilities Commission have sent four utilities' plan to include wildfire-related costs in customer rates back to the drawing board.
December 22
Australia prepares for air tanker trials
Flight International
The Australian state of Victoria will deploy a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 on firefighting missions from January in the first trial of a very large airtanker in the country.
December 21
Records show no mention of terrain in withholding aircraft during Station fire
Los Angeles Times
Newly released records contradict a finding by the U.S. Forest Service that steep terrain prevented the agency from using aircraft to attack -- and potentially contain -- the Station fire just before it began raging out of control.
December 16
Group intends to sue after retardant kills fish
The Associated Press/San Jose Mercury News
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.—An environmental group intends to sue state and county agencies after fire retardant used on Santa Barbara wildfires killed some 50 protected steelhead trout this year.
December 15
Forest Service fined $12,000 for smoke from controlled burn
Yakima Herald-Republic
YAKIMA, Wash. -- Months after a controlled burn that sent thick smoke into the Yakima Valley, a local environmental agency has fined the U.S. Forest Service a maximum penalty of $12,000 for violating the Washington Clean Air Act.
U.S. Forest Service sued over tree-removal project
Ventura County Star
Two environmental groups filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the U.S. Forest Service, alleging it did not adequately allow the public to comment on land-use decisions.
December 13
We need a more sensible forest fire policy
Mail Tribune
By this time of the year, the annual Southern Oregon wildfire season is long forgotten. With the current wave of cold weather, instead of fighting fire, cozying up next to a fire (perhaps with a book and a hot cup of cocoa) is more on the mind. However, some very important decisions are currently being made about the future of wildland fire fighting in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest that deserve our attention.
December 9
Bills would push more national forest thinning
The Gouverneur Times
GRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) — Bills to open more of the backcountry in national forests to fire-prevention thinning projects and to promote woodburning heating systems in public buildings have been introduced in the U.S. House.
December 8
AFE Releases Carbon Position
news.thomasnet.com
USA -- AFE’s position paper on the role of fire in managing long-term carbon stores was created in response to President Obama’s Executive Order (No. 13514: “Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance") issued on October 5, 2009.
December 5
BUDGET WOES: California pays IOU to state
But tab for fighting fires still tops $566,000
Las Vegas Review-Journal
CARSON CITY -- The state of California still owes the Nevada Division of Forestry $566,983 for helping fight its fires, but has paid off its $33,383.01 IOU.
December 4
Smoky Forests Boast Good Health
www.backpacker.com
Scientists say that fires benefit forest ecosystems
Check it, Smokey the Bear: Turns out, we shouldn’t be preventing forest fires.
Federal forests could be tasked with fighting global warming
The Oregonian
If forests are the planet's lungs, few breathe deeper than those in Oregon.
December 3
Report: No fault with forest workers in fatal fire
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Federal investigators have found no misconduct by U.S. Forest Service personnel in the deaths of five firefighters in a massive 2006 California wildfire.
Learning to love forest fires in Yosemite National Park
BBC News, Yosemite National Park
When southern California is consumed by fire, the state employs an arsenal of equipment and manpower to battle the inferno. The key priority is to save lives and homes.
December 2
California faces up to year-round forest fires
BBC News, Los Angeles
The past year has seen some of the most devastating wildfires in California since records began.
Lives have been lost, great swathes of land have been blackened and hundreds of homes have been destroyed. In August, a blaze which became known as the Station Fire burned more than 650 sq km (250 square miles) of the Angeles National Forest.
San Diego County Slash and Burn
www.californiachaparral.com
Instead of dealing with the wildfire problem by addressing all the variables involved and adequately funding a county-wide fire department, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors has decided to blame nature by proposing to burn off or grind up extensive amounts of the region's native shrubland ecosystems. Interestingly, most of the money required for such a plan would come from the federal government. The county would have to pay for its own fire department.
December 1
U.S. Forest Service reviews no-night-flying rule
The review appears to be a response to criticism that the agency would not allow firefighting helicopters in the air during the early hours of the mammoth Station fire in the Angeles National Forest.
Los Angeles Times
The U.S. Forest Service is reviewing its practice of not flying firefighting helicopters at night, in an apparent response to criticism of how the agency handled the early hours of the huge Station fire.
CLIMATE: Scientists prescribe controlled burns to protect forests, curb emissions
E&E News PM
Scientists from the Association for Fire Ecology today called for the increased use of fire in forests, arguing that planned burning is the key to reducing net carbon emissions and preparing forests for the effects of climate change.
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FUSEE is a non-profit organization dedicated to public education on fire ecology and management issues. We believe this news service to be 'Fair Use' of the cited copyrighted material for educational purposes and will advance awareness, understanding, and public discussion of issues relating to firefighter safety, ethical land management, environmental protection, ecological restoration, and other issues in the public interest.