Summer Wildfire Safety Resources
With everyone excited to spend more time outdoors and concerned about the impact of increased backcountry visitors, backcountry wildfire safety tips were discussed during our May membership call. Working with the Colorado Search & Rescue Association and the Division of Fire Prevention and Control, we've compiled some shareable tips and resources to encourage backcountry users to #knowbeforeyougo.
Having a flexible mindset, along with a backup plan are some ways to help you mitigate your risk this summer. REI has put together this useful Wildfire Safety Tips for Outdoor Recreation on their website. Other helpful resources include:
Enjoy your early summer!
Cindy Howard
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MEMBERS CORNER
FACO members lead the charge during Wildfire Awareness and Preparedness month. Thank you to all who posted, shared and amplified the #wildfirepreparedness messaging during May. We heard from a few FACO members for Wildfire Community Preparedness Day the first Saturday in May including:
- Fire Adapted Bailey and Platte Canyon FPD worked with partners to hold two Personal Evacuation Planning Workshops with 134 attendees across two sessions, with printing support through the FACO Opportunity Fund.
- Rotary Wildfire Ready co-hosted an event with their local fire departments and their very cool educational fire truck, with around 300 individuals stopping by to learn how to get prepared for wildfire, and
- Our very own Rebecca Samulski was caught resting during the roadside thinning project she helped organize for her neighborhood, getting a BLM and FS crew out with their chipper. (Note the load of wood in the truck. Everyone was too busy working to catch her on camera working through two tanks of gas in the chainsaw.)
 2022 FACO membership renewal forms were e-mailed out to member organizations' primary points of contact on May 17th. If you didn't get a chance to complete a renewal form for your organization, please do so as soon as possible. Cindy has been updating your membership information, as well as making any requested website directory updates. If you missed your email from cindy@fireadaptedco.org, be sure to look for it and submit your renewal form.
Out-of-the-Office (FYI)
FACO staff will be out of the office during the in the 2nd half of June, either on vacation, or on assignment.
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Inspiration for Mitigation
Colorado knows the steps to take that could reduce the destruction of wildfires. It just hasn’t taken them by Veronica Penney at Colorado Public Radio
Catching Fire Evacuation Planning and Analysis in California slideshow presented at the American Planning Association conference outlines tools, methods, and considerations to integrate wildfire evacuation into community planning approaches.
The Colorado Resiliency Office hosted some of our members and friends to highlight actions that can be taken before wildfires to reduce the post-fire impacts during their March 19th Wildfire Recovery Local Government Peer Exchange. The speakers were able to highlight the impressive collaborative work they are doing with local governments, nonprofit partners, public land managers, and communities in order to restore forests post-fire, mitigate wildfires, and restore their watersheds.
View the recording below and access the slide deck here.
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Current Affairs:
Recent CO Legislation, CWPP Guidance, and the Infrastructure Law
Legislative Roundup from this last Colorado Legislative Session slides by Angela Boag, DNR
CWPP Minimum Standards and Guidance were updated earlier this year. If you haven't reviewed them yet, now is a great time.
Community Wildfire Defense Grants will help communities write, update, and implement CWPPs starting later this year. Angela Gee shared this excellent National Association of State Foresters Briefing on the new grant program. Colorado State Forest Service has opted to provide technical assistance but allow the USFS to manage grant awards in our state.
FACO worked with partners to present an Infrastructure Law Overview for Forest Collaborative Groups webinar on May 25th. You can access presentation titles, timestamped Youtube recordings, links to viewable slideshows, and links and contact information shared by each presenter and view the full recording below.
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Investment and Jobs Act overview for Forest Collaboratives May 25, 2022
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UPCOMING EVENTS
June 6 - 10, Around the State
DFPC Colorado Statewide Risk Assessment Listening Sessions: Read more and RSVP to attend.
June 7, 10:00 - 11:30 MT, Virtual
Colorado Wildland Fire Conference April 2023 Planning Call: If you are interested in helping plan the conference to be held in the northern front range, please contact us. Planning teams calls will typically be held monthly, on the first Tuesday, until Apr 5, 2023.
June 28, Last Day to Submit
2023 WUI Conference Call for Presentations in Reno, NV, March 28-30, 2023
April 11-14, 2023
SAVE THE DATES - Colorado Wildland Fire Conference: Accelerating Adaptation and Managing Expectations, Fort Collins, CO
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JOBS
Colorado State Forest Service has an opening for a Forest Monitoring Program Manager in Fort Collins , applications must be received by 5/9/22. Other full-time CSFS openings include Lead Project Foresters in Salida and Golden, among others that can be found here.
Forest Stewards Guild has an opening in Sante Fe, NM for both a Southwest Fire and Fuels Project Manager and a Southwest Region Project Coordinator.
The Ember Alliance is hiring four positions: Resilient Communities and Forests Program Director, Planning Operations Specialist, Planning Assistant Fire Management Officer, and Fundraising Development Intern. Access them from the join our team page of the TEA website.
West Region Wildfire Council is seeking a Partnership & Collaboration Director, in Ridgway Colorado.
Wildfire Adapted Partnership has two part-time (FTE 0.75) openings for an Administrative Coordinator, position in Durango, CO as well as a County Coordinator, position for Montezuma County.
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