Appendix V: Examples of Applications with Geospatial Components Supporting Wildland Fire Management

Appendix 2

Document or initiative

What it does

Relationship to

other initiatives

Federal Wildland Fire

Management Policy and

Program Review,

December 1995

This policy responded to the tragic fires of 1994. Among other

things, the report

• reaffirms the protection of life as the first priority,

• recognizes wildland fire as a critical natural process,

• requires that fire management plans be developed for all

burnable acres,

• requires that fire management decisions be consistent with

approved land and resource management plans,

• requires that agency administrators conside r a full range of

fire management actions, and

• clarifies the role of federal agencies in the wildland-urban

interface.

Provides the

overarching fire

policy framework for

the Department of

Agriculture’s Forest

Service (FS) and the

Department of the

Interior’s National

Park Service (NPS),

Fish and Wildlife

Service (FWS),

Bureau of Indian

Affairs (BIA), and

Bureau of Land

Management (BLM).

A Report to the President:

Managing the Impact of

Wildfires on Communities

and the Environment,

September 2000

Web site:

www.fireplan.gov/content

/reports/

This report was developed in response to a Presidential request.

It provides recommendations to the Departments of Agriculture

and the Interior on how best to respond to the severe fire

season of 2000.

Among other key recommendations, the report recommends

that the departments

• provide additional firefighting resources;

• restore damaged landscapes and communities;

• increase investment to reduce fire risk (emphasis on multijurisdictional

efforts that give better landscape protection);

• work directly with local communities that are at risk, to

improve community fire-fighting capacity and coordination,

implement restoration and fuel reduction projects, and

expand education and risk mitigation efforts in the wildland

urban interface; and

• establish accountability.

Provides the basis

and conceptual

framework for the

National Fire Plan

and the 10-Year

Comprehensive

Strategy.

The National Fire Plan

Initiative, October 2000

This initiative is a long-term, multifaceted program designed to

manage the impacts of wildland fire on communities and

ecosystems and to reduce wildfire risk. It encompasses the

Departments of Agriculture (FS) and the Interior (NPS, FWS,

BIA, BLM). The program focuses on

• improving fire preparedness,

• restoring and rehabilitating burned areas,

• reducing hazardous fuels,

• assisting communities, and

• accountability.

Implements the

recommendations in

the Report to the

President through

the Departments of

Agriculture and the

Interior, with

increased funding

provided by

Congress.

Protecting People and

Sustaining Resources in

Fire-Adapted Ecosystems:

A Cohesive Strategy,

October 2000

This strategy is the Forest Service’s response to GAO report

RCED-99-65,a which found that fuel buildup was a major

problem in the interior west and recommended that the Forest

Service develop a cohesive strategy for reducing fuel buildup.

The strategy establishes a framework to restore and maintain

the health of fire-adapted ecosystems on National Forest System

lands. It focuses treatments in “short-interval” fire-adapted

ecosystems—ecosystems where frequent lower-intensity ground

fires historically occurred and were a powerful force in shaping

the makeup and structure of vegetative communities.

The strategy identifies as priority areas for treatment

• wildland urban interface,

• municipal watersheds,

• threatened and endangered species habitats, and

• the maintenance of low risk Condition Class I areas.

Identifies priorities

and focus for

hazardous fuel

treatments on

national forest

system lands, as

called for in the

National Fire Policy

and the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy.

Review and Update of the

1995 Federal Wildland Fire

Management Policy,

January 2001

Web site:

www.nifc.gov/fire_policy/

index.htm

This policy

• reviews the status of 1995 Fire Policy implementation and

provides recommendations for full implementation,

• addresses specific issues raised in the Cerro Grande

Prescribed Fire Investigation report,

• recommends creating a senior level interagency mechanism

to oversee fire policy implementation,

• recommends a series of strategic implementation actions that

are essential for wildland fire management, and

• recommends establishing a new mechanism for ensuring

coordinated implementation of the policy.

Reaffirms the

relevance of the

1995 Federal Fire

Policy; provides a

contemporary and

comprehensive

interagency federal

fire management

policy to support

long-term

implementation of

the National Fire Plan

and the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy.

A Collaborative Approach

for Reducing Wildland Fire

Risks to Communities and

the Environment: 10-year

Comprehensive Strategy,

August 2001

Web site:

www.fireplan.gov/content

/reports/

This coordinated 10-year strategy to comprehensively manage

wildfire, hazardous fuels, and ecosystem restoration was

developed in collaboration with governors and in consultation

with a broad range of stakeholders. Its scope includes federal

and adjacent state, tribal, and private lands. Its primary goals

are to

• improve fire prevention and suppression,

• reduce hazardous fuels,

• restore fire-adapted ecosystems, and

• promote community assistance.

The core principles of the strategy are collaboration, priority

setting, and accountability.

Extends the concepts

of the Report to the

President and focus

of the National Fire

Plan into a broader,

longer-term,

collaborative effort.

A Collaborative Approach

for Reducing Wildland Fire

Risks to Communities and

the Environment: 10-year

Comprehensive Strategy

Implementation Plan, May

2002

Web site:

www.fireplan.gov/content

/reports/

The plan identifies 22 specific tasks supporting four goals

identified in the 10-year Comprehensive Strategy and

performance measures that are interagency and

interdepartmental in scope. It was developed in collaboration

with governors and in consultation with a broad range of

stakeholders. It emphasizes a collaborative, community-based

approach to address issues related to wildland fires.

Translates the

conceptual

framework of the 10-

year Comprehensive

Strategy into specific

actions, identifying

time frames for

completion.

Healthy Forests: An

Initiative for Wildfire

Prevention and Stronger

Communities, August

2002

Web site:

www.whitehouse.gov/

infocus/healthyforests/

toc.html

This presidential initiative is to better protect people and natural

resources by lowering the procedural and process hurdles that

impede the reduction of hazardous fuels on public land, and to

fulfill the original objectives of the Northwest Forest Plan. The

initiative has legislative and administrative components.

The administration will propose to (1) facilitate timely reviews of

high priority forest health restoration and rehabilitation projects,

consistent with agency procedures and land and resource

management plans; (2) amend rules for project appeals to

hasten the process of reviewing vital forest health projects while

encouraging meaningful public participation; (3) improve the

Endangered Species Act process to expedite decisions to allow

timely completion of fuels treatment projects while providing

protection for wildlife and restoring habitat; and (4) establish

improved and more focused process for environmental

assessments of forest health projects. All these actions will

make it easier for land managers to restore forest and rangeland

health, while also engaging communities early, frequently, and

in a meaningful way in these decisions. These changes will bring

about more timely actions to restore forest and rangeland

health.

The initiative emphasizes using collaborative processes in

identifying projects and priorities.

In facilitating fuels

reduction projects,

the healthy forest

initiative would

speed

implementation of

projects, improving

implementation of

the National Fire Plan

and the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy. It is a

legislative proposal

that requires the use

of a collaborative

process consistent

with the

Implementation Plan

for the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy.

Memorandum of

Understanding for the

Development of a

Collaborative Fuels

Treatment Program

among the Department of

Agriculture (FS), the

Department of the Interior

(BLM, FWS, and NPS), the

National Association of

State Foresters, and the

National Association of

Counties

January 2003

Web site:

www.fireplan.gov/content

/reports/

The memorandum provides the framework of a process for the

federal land management agencies, the National Association of

State Foresters, and the National Association of Counties to

collaborate on the annual selection of a fuels treatment program

within their respective jurisdictions, in order to provide for

community protection and enhance the health of forests and

rangelands. Concentration on high priority areas will be

facilitated by

• collaborating by notification and discussion of an annual

program of work for fuels treatment,

• completing a proposed program of work by May 1 of each

year,

• placing priority on treating acres within states that are

actively incorporating projects into a joint program of work,

• taking into account multiyear landscape-level projects across

ownerships, and

• considering long-term investments and sequencing of

projects and building on prior year programs to ensure that

projects are strategically located and implemented across

landscapes.

Consistent with the

goals, performance

standards, and

collaborative

framework outlined

in the 10-Year

Comprehensive

Strategy and

Implementation

Plan.

Protecting People and

Natural Resources: A

Cohesive Fuel Treatment

Strategy (Draft)

February 2003

The strategy outlines a coordinated approach to fuels treatment

to be adopted by the five major federal land management

agencies in the Departments of Agriculture and the Interior.

The strategy provides considerations for local prioritization in

project planning to ensure that areas that present the greatest

risk to communities and cultural, historical, and natural

resources receive the highest priority for funding. These

considerations include

• quality interagency planning,

• evidence of active community participation, and

• development of partnerships and other collaborative efforts

with stakeholders.

It also explains and clarifies the common goals of fuel

treatments. It

• reiterates the mission of the fuels treatment program,

• clarifies priorities for selecting projects, and

• spells out the strategy for reducing the risk of wildland fire.

Emphasizes goals

two and three in the

Implementation Plan

for the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy. Uses

performance

measures outlined in

the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy to measure

success.

2001 Fire Policy

Implementation Plan (in

development)

This implementation plan will develop a common code for fire

management organizations within the five major federal land

management agencies in the Departments of Agriculture and the

Interior. It is to ensure unified implementation of the 2001 Fire

Policy.

Provides uniform

implementation of

federal fire policy to

enable effective

collaboration with

states, tribes, and

communities in

implementing the

National Fire Plan,

the 10-year

Comprehensive

Strategy, and the

Interagency

Cohesive Treatment

Strategy.

Appendix V: Examples of Applications with Geospatial Components Supporting Wildland Fire Management

The following tables provide examples of different applications with geospatial information components that are used in support of wildland fire management activities. Table 3 provides examples of operational applications, and table 4 provides examples of developmental applications.

Table 3

Name and description

Lead entities

Users

For more information

Automated Flight Following:

transmits geographic positions of

aircraft for graphical display

Forest Service (FS)

Bureau of Indian

Affairs (BIA)

Bureau of Land

Management (BLM)

Forest Service (FS)

Fish and Wildlife

Service (FWS)

National Park Service

(NPS)

https://aff.nifc.gov/

Automated Lightning

Mapping System: downloads

and maps near-real-time

lightning location information

from the BLM lightning data

server

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/planning

/nist/alms.htm#ALMS

California Fire Plan

Assessment System: assesses

weather, fuels, and assets at

risk to identify areas to target

for mitigation projects

California

http://www.fire.ca.gov/

fireemergencyresponse/fireplan/

chapter3.html

Coarse Scale Spatial Data for

Wildland Fire and Fuel

Management: provides

nationwide coarse-scale

vegetation and fire regime

mapping

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/fuelman

Ecosystem Management

Model: simulates ecosystem

processes and evaluates

resource management actions

before their implementation

Canada

Fire and Fuels Extension to

Forest Vegetation Simulator:

simulates effects of treatment

alternatives on fuel dynamics

and fire potential into the future

FS (regional use)

http://forest.moscowfsl.wsu.edu/

4155/ffe-fvs.html

Fire Area Simulator

(FARSITE): simulates and

maps fire growth and behavior

under complex terrain, fuels,

and weather conditions

BLM

NPS

State governments

Local governments

http://www.farsite.org

Fire Potential Index: provides

national fire potential mapping

based on vegetation and

weather data

U.S. Geological

Survey (USGS)

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.fs.fed.us/land/wfas/

experment.htm

FirePac: provides tools for a

variety of fire management

applications, including fire

perimeter mapping

NPS

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/gis/

incident-support/firepac.htm

Forest Vegetation

Information System: stores,

retrieves, and analyzes data

used to inventory and monitor

vegetation on forested lands

BLM

http://www.blm.gov/nstc/

resourcenotes/rn48.html

FX-Net: provides portable

weather forecasting

National Oceanic and

Atmospheric

Administration

(NOAA)

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

National Weather

Service

http://www-id.fsl.noaa.gov/

fxnet.html

GeoMAC: provides Internetbased

national fire monitoring

and perimeter mapping

USGS

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

Public

http://www.geomac.gov

Immediate Response Burn

Severity Mapping for Burned

Area Emergency Response

Teams: provides preliminary

burn severity mapping to FS

fires and provides support to

other agency fires on request

BIA

BLM

NPS

http://www.fs.fed.us/eng/rsac/

baer

Immediate Response Burn

Severity Mapping for

Emergency Stabilization and

Rehabilitation Teams:

provides preliminary burn

severity mapping

USGS

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://edc2.usgs.gov/fsp/severity

/fire_main.asp

Initial Attack Management

System: records, monitors, and

reports aviation hazards and

restrictions

BLM

http://www.nifc.blm.gov/nsdu/

aviation

Initial Attack Management

System Maps Viewer: provides

graphical representation of

various kinds of geographic data

BLM

Alaska Fire Service version at

http://fire.ak.blm.gov/scripts/

maps/maps.asp

Integrated Forest

Management System:

integrates vegetation/fuels data

and tools for fuels reduction

analysis

FS (regional use)

http://www.fs.fed.us/foresthealth

/technology/products/informs/INF

overview.html

Landscape Fire Model:

provides for land use planning

BLM (Alaska)

Landscape Simulation Model:

provides spatially explicit

landscape dynamics simulation

modeling for southern Utah

FS (regional use)

http://www.firelab.org/fep/

research/sufm/studyplan/ls.htm

Lightning Data: displays realtime

lightning information and

provides tracking capability

BLM

http://www.nifc.blm.gov/nsdu/

lightning/

Meteorology for Fire Severity

Forecasting: provides monthly

forecasts of weather-induced fire

potential for the continental

United States

http://met.rfl.psw.fs.fed.us/met/

MFWF.html

MODIS Active Fire Mapping:

provides coarse-scale mapping

of current wildfire locations and

fire perimeters

National Aeronautics

and Space

Administration

(NASA)

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

Public

http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us

Multi-Resource Analysis and

Geographic Information:

schedules treatments to meet

resource and management

objectives and computes tradeoffs

associated with the

treatment schedule

National Fire Danger Rating

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.forestry.umt.edu/

magis

National Fire Danger Rating

System: uses fuels, topography,

and weather to derive national

maps of potential fire occurrence

and behavior

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.fs.fed.us/land/wfas/

wfas23.html

National Fire Plan Maps:

provides Internet-based

mapping of hazardous fuels

program projects in relation to

wildland urban interface

communities

USGS

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://www.fireplan.gov

National Fire Plan Operations

& Reporting System

(NFPORS): provides Internetbased

mapping and data

collection for restoration and

rehabilitation, hazardous fuels

reduction, and community

assistance projects

Department of the

Interior

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://www.nfpors.gov

National Wildland Fire

Outlook: provides seasonal and

monthly maps and narratives of

the national wildland fire outlook

National Interagency

Coordination Center

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.nifc.gov/

firemaps.html

NFSPUFF: models smoke

dispersion for complex terrains

in the western United States

FS (western U.S.)

http://www.frames.gov/tools/html

/NFSPUFF.detailed.html

Normalized Difference

Vegetation Index: provides

national vegetation greenness

mapping

USGS

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.fs.fed.us/land/wfas/

wfas11.html

NPS-USGS National Burn

Severity Mapping: provides

extended assessment burn

severity mapping for long-term

monitoring of fire effects

NPS

USGS

NPS

http://edc2.usgs.gov/fsp/severity

/fire_main.asp

Personal Computer Historical

Analysis: analyzes historical

wildland fire occurrence for

wildland fire planning

BIA

BLM

http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/planning

/nist/pcha.htm

Phoenix Digital Signal

Processor: provides infrared

fire detection and mapping

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://nirops.fs.fed.us

Real-time Observation

Monitor and Analysis

Network: provides current fire

weather conditions nationwide

BLM

University of Utah

http://www.met.utah.edu/roman

Resources Ordering and

Status System: automates

resource ordering, dispatching,

and reporting; geospatial

component is planned

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

Federal Emergency

Management Agency

State governments

http://ross.nwcg.gov

Risk Assessment and

Mitigation Strategies:

provides a process for

developing prevention and fuels

management programs

BLM

BIA

BLM

http://www.nifc.blm.gov/nsdu/fire

_planning/rams

SAM Sensitive Area Program:

provides spatial analyses for

mapping complex resource

issues for overflight planning

NPS

http://www.nps.gov/gis/

applications/new_apps.html

Southern State Fuel Hazard

Mapping: provides a map of

fuel hazards and a fuel model for

all southeastern states

FS (regional)

FWS

State governments

Local governments

Tool for Exploratory

Landscape Scenario Analysis:

helps resource managers and

planners assess the

consequences of alternative

management scenarios at the

scale of landscape units

http://www.eessa.com/downloads

/telsa

Utah Wildfire Initial Attack

Dispatch Application Cedar

City Support Center: provides

dispatching of fire personnel and

geospatial information system

capabilities

Utah

BIA (regional use)

BLM (regional use)

NPS (regional use)

Utah

Ventilation Climate

Information System: assesses

risks to values of air quality and

visibility from historical patterns

of ventilation conditions

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/fera/

vent

Wildfire Hazard Identification

and Mitigation System:

combines wildfire hazard

assessment, prevention, and

suppression expertise with fire

and forest management

knowledge

Boulder County,

Colorado

Local government

http://www.co.boulder.co.us/lu/

wildfire/whims.htm

Wildland Fire Assessment

System: provides Internetbased

national fire potential and

weather mapping

Multiple users

(including federal,

state, and local

governments as well

as the public)

http://www.fs.fed.us/land/wfas

Wildland Fire Management

Information System: provides

Internet-based weather,

lightning, fire reporting, and

aviation information

BLM

http://www.nifc.blm.gov

Table 4:

Name and description

Lead entities

Planned users

For more information

Fire Behavior Mapping and

Analysis: is to map potential

fire behavior characteristics and

environmental conditions using

topography and fuels data layers

FS (local use)

http://fire.org/cgi-bin/

nav.cgi?pages=JFSP&mode=11

Fire Effects Assessment

Tools: is to provide fire ecology

and vegetation data collection,

data handling, and data analysis

NPS

http://ftp.nps.gov/incoming/fire/

feat_cbi

Fire Effects Monitoring and

Inventory Protocol: is to

provide standards for

implementing a monitoring

program before and after a burn

USGS

—

http://fire.org/firemon

Fire Internet Map Server: is

to provide a spatial display of

current fire intelligence

information

BLM

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://www.fs.fed.us/fire/gis/

Documents/FIMS_FINAL_RPT.doc

Fire Program Analysis: is to

conduct analyses for fire

management planning and

budgeting

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://fpa.nifc.gov

FireSat: is to provide national

wildland fire detection (formerly

called the Hazard Support

System and the Integrated

Hazard Information System)

USGS (1997)

NOAA (2001)

Federal Emergency

Management Agency

(late 2002)

Incident Based Automation:

is to automate management

activities during a fire incident

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

Landscape and Fire

Management Planning Tools

(LANDFIRE): is to provide

nationwide vegetation/fuels

mapping and predictive models

needed for fuel treatment and

restoration projects

USGS

BIA

BLM

FWS

NPS

http://www.landfire.gov

National Land Cover Data

2001: is to provide nationwide

intermediate-scale land cover

mapping

Environmental

Protection Agency

NOAA

USGS

http://landcover.usgs.gov/

nationallandcover.html

National Park Service

Vegetation and Fuels

Mapping: is to provide

vegetation/fuels mapping of NPS

lands

NPS

USGS

NPS

http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg

Southern Wildfire Risk

Assessment: is to provide tools

to help analyze mitigation

options and estimate their

impact on wildland fire risk for

13 southern states

Southern state

governments

Southern states

http://corp.spaceimaging.com/

swra/