In January 2011, a planning grant was awarded to the Pacific Region from the Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP). Currently, HWMO is collaborating with multiple partners in applying to become part of the JFSP Knowledge Exchange Consortia.
The collaborators on the planning grant used the award to establish the Pacific Fire Science Consortium (PFSC), which has supported diverse planning activities. Following meetings and the release of the PFSC’s 1st newsletter in April 2011, the PFSC created and released across the region through existing agency networks a comprehensive needs assessment in the form of a web-based survey . The assessment team included USFS research scientists, Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization (HWMO) social scientists and fire managers, and program managers with the Pacific Disaster Center and the DOD. The survey targeted potential end-users to better understand how to address four specific “major challenges” which had been identified by fire managers and scientists across the region.
Joint Fire Science Program
Need for a Consortium in The Pacific
The Pacific region is currently underrepresented in current, organized, and regionally- specific fire science information. There is a tremendous need for enhanced collaboration and communication within the Pacific’s scientific and resource management communities to bridge the differences between geographic locations (insular states, territories, and nations) as well as in ecology, culture, and language.
The Pacific Fire Science Consortium (PFSC) was formed to meet the needs of scientists and managers for a collaborative and regionally relevant approach toward effective fire prevention and management, and to stimulate and utilize “best available” research to reduce fire management costs and enhance our ability to effectively protect natural, social, and cultural resources from wildfire devastation.
In Hawaii and the U.S. Affiliated Pacific, developed areas often abut wildland and agricultural areas, which increase the probability of wildfire impacts on communities (poor air quality, power/phone line damage, post-burn erosion/ land slides/ dust, and fire spread along wildland-urban interface [WUI] boundaries and through adjacent neighborhoods).
The four primary challenges are:
• Easier Access to information Sources
• Better and More Comprehensive Information
• Improved Technical Assistance
• More Collaborative Information Transfer Environment
Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization
Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, Kamuela, HI
Partners
Within the Consoritum
The PFSC will provide information, training, and tools for region-specific wildfire mitigation activities that can take place along WUI boundaries, and will focus on addressing the following issues and end-users:
• Fire Suppression
(Local, State, County, Federal, Private)
• Air Quality
• Water Quality
• Utilities
• Emergency Response
• Planning/ Development
• Political Leadership/ Legislation
Regional fire consortia in the US - Sponsored by the Joint Fire Science Project
Regional Consortia
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The Pacific Fire Exchange has officially launched their own website! Closely partnered with HWMO, PFX has been utilizing HWMO's domain and website to convay information about the newest of The Joint Fire Sicence Program's Regional Consortia. Now the exchange can be found at it's own website :
This site will continue to grow and develop over time so keep checking it out, or join the PFX mailing list.
