N.M. Report Calls For Changes to Wildland Fire Strategy

April 03--LAS CRUCES -- New Mexico Rep. Steve Pearce on Tuesday issued a report that reviews the Forest Service's handling of two catastrophic wildfires last year and calls for major changes to the nation's fire management strategy.

The report, however, does not find that Forest Service officials erred in their handling of the Whitewater-Baldy Complex Fire, which set a record as New Mexico's largest wildfire by torching nearly 300,000 acres in the Gila National Forest, or the Little Bear Fire which became the state's most destructive wildfire by destroying more than 250 homes and structures and burning 44,000 acres in and around the Lincoln National Forest north of Ruidoso.

The report, sponsored by the California-based National Institute for the Elimination of Catastrophic Wildfire, however, does criticize the Forest Service generally for its "inability ... to implement sound forest management practices," a failure the report says allowed the Whitewater-Baldy, the Little Bear and other fires to "escape early containment and control."

The report, by retired Forest Service law enforcement investigator Bill Derr, says the decisions and actions taken by fire managers were "consistent with current National Fire Policy and protocols," available resources and specific conditions on the ground. But, Derr adds, "If a more aggressive National Fire Policy had been in place with enhanced firefighting resources and if hazardous fuel conditions had been mitigated through sound forest management practices, these wildfires could have been more easily contained and controlled."

Derr calls for a return to the practice of trying to control wildfires by 10 a.m. the day after they are spotted, and he recommends Congress amend federal law that currently allows plaintiffs, such as environmental organizations, to collect attorneys' fees if they successfully sue the Forest Service.

Pearce was an early critic of the Forest Service's handling of the Little Bear Fire, questioning whether the agency could have more quickly snuffed out the lightning-sparked fire in its early stages. Gusting winds, which arrived sooner than predicted, caused the fire ignited on June 4 to spin out of control on the night of June 8 and early June 9.

A rumor spread quickly through Ruidoso last year that the Forest Service allowed the Little Bear Fire to burn, essentially as a controlled fire to clean out hazardous fuels, with disastrous results. The office of Attorney General Gary King concluded the Forest Service had tried to suppress the blaze from the start.

In a prepared statement, Pearce said: "Today's report is a step toward the transparent, locally-driven approach to forest management that New Mexico needs. New Mexicans have expressed anger and frustration over the handling of recent fires. ... By understanding thoroughly what has gone wrong with fire management in past summers, we can work to improve our fire prevention and forestry policies, starting now."

Copyright 2013 - Albuquerque Journal, N.M.