2 Cooperative Fire Hazard Mitigation Priority Project By Eric Geisler Coeur d’Alene Tribe, Forestry

3 Cooperators – Approximately 30 Parties Coeur d’Alene Tribe Idaho Department of Lands USDA - FS USDI – BLM, BIA, USGS Major Land Owners – Timber industry County EMS Rural Fire Districts Panhandle Area Council Cooperative Fuels Planning & Mitigation

4 Objectives Build on existing plan. Prioritize fuels treatment at stand level across all ownerships in Benewah County & the Reservation Interagency/ownership planning group –Encourage implementation –Cooperate on funding & grant applications Provide County EMS GIS capability to track mitigation progress Use current data with minimum field measurement

5 Procedures Aerial remote sensing for Fuels mapping –Acquire imagery –Develop baseline ground data – FIREMON –Use remote sensing to create fuels map Verification on ground – FIREMON & SCA Use new and existing data in models –LANDFIRE –FARSITE –FLAM-MAP –& Others

6 Procedures- Continued Use models to develop risk rating based on –Vegetation, FRCC, Fuels characteristics –Topography and physical variables –Fire potential, fire history –Structure density Work out interagency approach to implementation of hazard mitigation program that will encourage participation

7 Break Down of Activities Imagery Acquisition – Completed & on-going Data Integration – On-Going Data Collection – On-Going Vegetation Modeling – In Process The Future Plans – Working Groups –Broad input –Values –Goals Development of Priority Lists Funding and Implementation of Projects

8 Bio-Physical Settings Fire Regime Condition Class (FRCC) –Geographic area –Physical setting Climate, Geology, Geomorphology, Soils –Vegetative community Native species and successional stages Range of historic variation and disturbance –Fire Frequency, size, severity –BpS ~ Potential Natural Vegetation ( PNV) –Handout of Fire Regimes for study area

9 Biophysical Settings Summary BpS -primary landscape delineation for FRCC and incorporates both classification and map unit concepts. Vegetation is used as the environmental expression of the land’s capability—a proxy for describing the biophysical setting. FRCC uses a potential natural vegetation (PNV) concept that incorporates natural disturbance; Incorporation of disturbance is critical in FRCC determination because FRCC is an estimate of the departure from the natural or historical range of disturbance.

10 BpS Summary – Cont. Historical range developed under different climatic regime; therefore, where data are available, use the current (natural) range of variation given lack of modern human interference. Existing, potential, and historical vegetation concepts used for FRCC Current conditions use existing vegetation. Concept of potential natural vegetation (PNV) represents the environmental setting and the landscape’s capability to generate the structure, function, and composition of ecosystems. Potential land capability, associated with an historical range of variation in disturbance, provides information on historical vegetation, which in turn provides a context for determination of the reference conditions used in FRCC assessments.

11 Fire Regime Frequency, Severity, Pattern Regimes –I 0-35 year frequency and low severity to mixed severity –II 0-35 year frequency and high severity –III year frequency and mixed severity –IV year frequency and high severity –V 200+ year frequency and high severity

12 FIRE REGIME - Continued Fire Regime TerrainFlatSteep I – Frequent, surface & mixed 50-2, ,000 II – Frequent, replacement 50-2, ,000 III – Infrequent, mixed & surface 500-2, ,000 IV – Infrequent, replacement 5,000-1,000,000 2, ,000 V – Rare, replacement 5,000-1,000,000 2, ,000 V – Rare, mixed 50-10, ,000

13 CONDITION CLASS Departure from Reference Conditions 3 Classifications –1 Similar to Expected –2 Somewhat Departed from Expected –3 Considerably Different from Expected Some Reasons for Departure –Fire suppression, timber harvesting, livestock grazing, introduction & establishment of exotic plant species, and introduced insects and disease

Reference Condition Characteristics for Forested Biophysical Settings, Western U.S. (*DRAFT: 01/11/05). A:B:C:D:E:FireDominantRepl. EarlyMidSer LateSer FreqFire BpS NameCodeSeral 1 ClosedOpen Closed(MFI)Regime 2 % %%% Cedar-Hemock-Pine (Washington)CHPI IV75 Douglas-fir Interior Rocky MountainsDFIR I10 Fir-Hemlock (Wash., Oreg), ForestFHWO V85 Grand Fir-Douglas firGFDF III30 Interior West Lower Subalpine Forest #1 a SPFI IV67 Interior West Lower Subalpine Forest #2 SPFI V83 Lodgepole Pine-Subalpine Calif.LPSC III25 Cedar-Hemlock Douglas-fir (Interior)CHDO V60 Pine-Douglas fir-Central RockiesPPDF I15 Ponderosa Pine Northern & C.RockiesPPIN I7 Ponderosa Pine PNW/Great BasinPPIN I10 Ponderosa Pine Southern RockiesPPIN I10 Ponderosa Pine-Douglas-fir (Inland NW) PPDF I24 Riparian (willow-sedge)3RIPAVar.

15 FIRE REGIME + CONDITION CLASS = FRCC