On Monday, Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman signed into law LB 634, the Wildfire Control Act of 2013 which authorizes the state to contract for one Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT). The act also directs that two bases for SEATs be constructed and to acquire one or more mobile SEAT bases. It went into effect immediately after being signed.
The signed bill also directs the Nebraska Forest Service to administer fuel reduction programs and to provide wildfire training for volunteer fire departments and private landowners.
Before the legislation was modified, the original version authorized the state to contract for two SEATS at Chadron and Valentine, but that was eventually cut back to one. Another item removed from the bill was direction to establish a Type 3 Incident Management Team in the state.
Cottonwood Fire, west of Crawford, NE, June 18, 2012. Photo by Bill Gabbert
In 2012 Nebraska had the most acres burned in wildfires since records started being kept in 1964. Approximately half a million acres were blackened by fire last year.
Acres burned in Nebraska wildfires, 1964-2012. From the Nebraska Forest Service.
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission biologist Shelley Steffl places a mixture of seeds, molasses and livestock mineral into a mold for drying. Once dried, the blocks are being fed to wildlife in hopes that the animals will distribute the seeds to remote areas of the Pine Ridge that were burned in wildfires.
If this works it could be a brilliant way to help replant areas burned in wildfires.
Natural resource officials in northwest Nebraska are turning to one of the oldest forms of seed dispersal to replace some of the countless trees and shrubs that were burned in the 2012 Pine Ridge forest fires.
Blocks containing seeds of native trees and shrubs soon will be fed to the region’s wild animals, which are expected to “deposit” the seeds in remote areas of the region’s rugged landscape.
Shelley Steffl of Chadron, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission wildlife biologist leading the effort, said the project is intended to move seeds to the most remote areas of the Pine Ridge and complement future forest rehabilitation efforts.
She and the crew have created 800 of the blocks and have enough seed for about 300 more. Up to 10 blocks initially will be made available to individual landowners whose timberland was affected by the fires. If blocks remain after the first round of dispersal, each landowner will be able to receive more as needed.
“We’re looking at making these seeds move through wildlife and not livestock,” Steffl said, noting the livestock are more likely to walk on gentle slope areas where thick grass provides too much competition for seeds. “The blocks are small enough that we can put them out so the deer, elk, turkeys and songbirds can help the seed dispersal.”
She’s recommending the blocks be placed a quarter-mile apart about midway up north- and east-facing slopes, where they will be less vulnerable to competition from thick grasses and heat as the seedlings grow.
The blocks contain seeds for 12 native species of trees and shrubs, including Rocky Mountain maple and Ponderosa pine.
Steffl said one of the greatest challenges of the project was developing a recipe that contains the right ratio of molasses and livestock mineral to keep the blocks from falling apart. Most livestock feed blocks are formed using pressure and heat, but that technique could not be used without sterilizing some of the seed.
Steffl said the idea for the project derived from a brainstorming session with Upper Niobrara White Natural Resources District Manager Lyndon Vogt, and Nebraska Forest Service district forester Doak Nickerson.
“The more we thought about it, the more we thought that it just might work,” she said.
A grant from the Nebraska Environmental Trust was used to help with a portion of funding for the project. Thanks to that contribution, these blocks are available to landowners for just $3 per block, which is well below the actual cost of seed and production.
Landowners who want to be placed on a list for the blocks may contact Steffl at 308-432-6190 or visit the Upper Niobrara White NRD, 430 E. Second St., Chadron.
The Nebraska legislature voted 36 to 0 on Monday to advance a bill to the second round of debate that would appropriate $1.7 million to improve the response to wildfires. LB634 directs that contracted single engine air tankers be stationed at Valentine and Chadron, one at each location, during the fire season. It would also provide for the thinning of forests, make more wildfire training available to volunteer firefighters, and develop a Type 3 incident management team.
The air tankers would be available through mutual aid agreements for fires that occur across the states lines in South Dakota, Colorado, and Wyoming.
Before the vote on Monday the bill was amended, adding the following:
Since an emergency exists, this act takes effect when passed and approved according to law.
Red Flag Warnings for enhanced wildfire danger have been issued by the National Weather Service for areas in New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, and Nebraska.
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The map above was current as of 1:00 p.m. MT on Monday. Red Flag Warnings can change throughout the day as the National Weather Service offices around the country update and revise their forecasts. For the most current data, visit this NWS site.
The state of Nebraska is offering to help forest landowners pay for the costs of reducing the fuel loads on their land. Using state and federal funds, the Nebraska Forest Service (NFS) is able to provide eligible forest landowners up to 75 percent cost-share assistance for fuels treatment projects. These programs are currently open to forest landowners in the Pine Ridge and Niobrara Valley areas. Other fuels treatment opportunities exist for Nebraska landowners whose land is adjacent to National Forest land.
In the future fuels treatment assistance programs may spread to communities in other areas if they have completed a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP).
More information is available in a NFS pamphlet (large 2.7MB file).
