Burned Area Emergency Response team protects visitors and resources from post-fire risk

A representative of the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe discusses his concerns for post-fire conditions in Stetattle Creek with archaeologists on the Sourdough BAER team on September 13, 2023

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The Department of Interior, Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Team was deployed during the post-fire recovery phase of the Sourdough Fire in North Cascades National Park to address hazards the fire created. The BAER Team worked quickly to evaluate and mitigate damage caused by the wildfire, and developed a long-term plan for repair and recovery which will stabilize soil, mitigate hazards to visitors, protect and repair trails and infrastructure, and protect important cultural and natural resources.

One hallmark success of the Sourdough Fire was the exceptional degree of coordination between the Resource Advisors (READ) and the BAER team. While READs address suppression-related impacts during the fire, the BAER team works to identify post-fire hazards and create mitigation and restoration plans to rapidly address these threats. READs identified critical resources impacted by the fire such as archeological sites, backcountry infrastructure, and rare whitebark pine populations. They shared this information to the incoming BAER team, enabling them to begin targeted assessments on their first day.

A fire ecologist on the BAER team collects data from a burnt conifer on September 12, 2023

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A priority for the BAER Team is to evaluate and address threats to human life and safety. Some safety threats stem from flooding risks. Hydrologists took measurements in the field and used the data to simulate different levels of storms to predict runoff and flood damage. Wildfires burning through vegetation can remove stabilizing elements like root systems. More water hits the ground at once, too fast for the soil to absorb it, which can cause flooding. The Stetattle Creek drainage, where the Sourdough Fire burned, has a high concentration of large boulders that are over two feet wide and can strike people during a flood, trap vehicles, and destroy structures in their path. The Seattle City Light (SCL) housing area of Hollywood in the Diablo townsite was identified by the BAER Team as now vulnerable, as several of its structures sit close to the base of burned slopes and may be impacted by tumbling rocks and debris as well as nuisance flooding from overland flow from burned slopes. The BAER Team and the North Cascades National Park Service Complex staff collaborated with the SCL power company, Natural Resource Conservation Service, and the National Weather Service in protecting numerous structures for this town. The ability for these partners to install point protection and control measures ahead of the rainy season is truly an impressive example of collaboration.

A fire ecologist on the BAER team hikes in the Stetattle Creek drainage in the Sourdough Fire footprint on September 12, 2023.

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Sourdough Mountain and Stetattle Creek trails were damaged in the Sourdough Fire. The old growth forests along these trails have expansive root systems that help to stabilize the soil. When those trees and their roots burn, large holes are created in the soil; over 100 of these holes were found on the Sourdough Mountain Trail. The BAER team recommended work to repair the trails including tread repair, stabilization of the outer edge of the trail tread, debris removal, and hazard tree removal.

Invasive plants establish themselves in recently disturbed open spaces, which can slow recovery of native species. After the Sourdough Fire, most plants entered winter dormancy. As spring plants emerge, restoration crews funded through Burned Area Rehabilitation will implement recommended treatments for mitigating invasive nonnative plant populations.

A vegetation ecologist surveys an area within the Sourdough Fire footprint on September 9, 2023.

NPS

The BAER team provides a plan for safe and effective post-fire management so that residents, employees, and visitors remain safe in a post-fire-changed landscape. The long-term work begins when the BAER team departs. Park staff will begin applying the plan’s mitigation treatments they choose to adopt. These projects can take years and often involve repair to infrastructure like damaged trails, application of treatment for invasive plants, restoration of wildlife habitat, and rehabilitation or protection of cultural resources. Wildfires can cause long-term changes to the landscape and the management of an area. A BAER Team can provide focused support for the park to rebound from wildfire as efficiently and effectively as possible.