Craters of the Moon National Monument
IIX. Prescribed Fire Management
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Wildland Fire Management Plan Craters of the Moon National Monument IIX. Prescribed Fire Management |
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The use of prescribed fire within Craters of the Moon National Monument is not contemplated in this plan for two reasons; 1) the potential resource objectives of a prescribed fire program have not been sufficiently documented as yet; 2) the monument currently lacks qualified staff to develop and implement such a program. This does not indicate a decision regarding the appropriateness of prescribe fire at CRMO nor does it preclude incorporation of a prescribed fire program in future revisions of this plan. Any revision to include prescribed fire would require additional NEPA compliance.
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Wildland Fire Management Plan Craters of the Moon National Monument IX. Fire Management Organization and Responsibilities |
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A. Organizational Structure of Park Fire Management Program
Craters of the Moon National Monument does not have a fire management organization. The Columbia Cascades Support Office FMO provides oversight and assistance as needed.
Currently, all FIREPRO funding for CRMO is managed by the Columbia Cascades Support Office (CCSO) FMO. Funding is available for engine maintenance, personal protective gear for firefighters, and training funds (on an as-needed and available basis).
C. Fire Management Organization in Relation to Park Organization
The Chief Ranger at CRMO is responsible for wildland fire preparedness, suppression operations, and coordination on suppression operations with mutual aid organizations. The Chief of Resources Management is responsible for fire planning, Wildland Fire Use implementation, wildland fire use monitoring, post fire site assessment and restoration. Both positions coordinate with one another, the Superintendent and the CCSO FMO on fire and resource management objectives, and all wildland fire implementation actions.
D. Superintendent's Responsibility for Periodic Assessment Signature
Periodic assessments for continued wildland fire use must be approved (signed) by the superintendent. For additional information see Wildland and Prescribed Fire Management Policy Implementation Procedures Reference Guide and RM-18, Chapter Nine.
Interagency coordination and cooperation is integral to successful implementation of the fire management program at CRMO. Only small, slow-moving wildland fires can be managed within the current capabilities of CRMO. All other wildland and prescribed fires will require external support by interagency cooperators. Annual review of cooperative agreements will ensure successful coordination.
See Appendix B for a listing of all interagency contacts.
See Appendix K for interagency and cooperative agreements.
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Wildland Fire Management Plan Craters of the Moon National Monument X. Fire Research |
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Information regarding fire effects in some specific ecosystems is incomplete. This absence of information should not constrain fire program implementation. Rather, as new information becomes available fire related resource management objectives can be refined in an adaptive management style.
A. Previous and Ongoing Fire Research at CRMO
In the development of this plan fire research was conducted by the Cooperative Park Studies Unit at the University of Idaho under the direction of Dr. Gerald Wright. These studies document past fire occurrence, vegetation and fuel components, and made estimates of fire behavior. This information has been incorporated into this plan.
There are currently no ongoing fire research projects at CRMO.
B. Fire Research Needs and Opportunities
Fire research has limited funding within the National Park Service. However, if it is determined that significant information is needed concerning the effects of fire or fire exclusion park managers may submit requests through the annual FIREPRO budget call. Additionally, requests for research funding may be made through the Joint Fire Sciences Group.
As research opportunities become available, studies should be undertaken to determine effects of fire use within CRMO on exotic weeds, water quality, aspen regeneration, riparian vegetation, erosion rates, and avifauna habitat.
Implementation of the CRMO FMP should not be contingent on completion of research of the local fire regime and fire effects on vegetation. A large body of scientific information already exists regarding effects of fire and fire exclusion for the plant associations of CRMO. Although this research was accomplished in other geographic areas, the results may be applied to CRMO (taking care to identify site differences and any subtle differences in effects that those differences might cause).
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Wildland Fire Management Plan Craters of the Moon National Monument XI. Monitoring |
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All NPS units applying wildland fire use and/or prescribed fire to accomplish resource benefits must prepare a Fire Monitoring Plan (RM-18). Four monitoring levels are recognized and parks must identify each of these in the plan. These levels include environmental planning, fire observations, immediate post-fire effects, and long-term change. These four levels are cumulative and must be linked to each other. This plan should be appended to the Fire Management Plan.
The CRMO Fire Monitoring Plan for Wildland Fire Use will be prepared independent of the Fire Management Plan and attached as an Appendix at a later time. Refer to Appendix M for the CRMO Fire Monitoring Plan.
The focus of this monitoring program will be to study big sagebrush plant associations and cheatgrass response. The reason for monitoring is to verify current fire ecology research throughout the monument, and to monitor the invasion of exotic species.The level of monitoring will be determined by current and predicted fire behavior. Large active fires will require qualified fire monitors recording fire weather readings onsite, estimating fire behavior parameters, noting fire effects, determining fuel moisture levels, and documenting fuel type fire behavior with photographs. Wildland use fires which are inactive or predicted to remain less than 10 acres may only require daily observation from lookouts or aircraft.
Reconnaissance monitoring provides a basic overview of the fire event. The data to be collected is as follows:
Fire Cause (ignition system)
Fire Location (origin)
Fire Size
Fuels and Vegetation Description
Relative Fire Activity
Potential for Further Spread
Current and Forecasted Weather
Resource or Safety Threats and Constraints
Smoke Volume and Movement
Fire Conditions monitoring will be dynamic over the management period of the fire. Fire and/or resource management staff assess and determine the level of monitoring of these variables. We measure the following fire conditions:
Fire Monitoring Period — to be determined by the fire or resource manager.
Topographic Variables
Fire Behavior
Smoke Characteristics
Fuel & Vegetation Type
Current & Forecasted Fire