Weekly Aggregation
The Infrastructure Plan and a fire in Estes Park
Hi Y’all, lots going on this week! All links are below, but first I want to let you know that I’ve got three interviews coming up and each one will be sent out Sunday morning. Don’t hesitate to ask questions in the comments! I’ll answer them.
Biden’s Infrastructure Bill as it applies to Wildland Fire:
In 2001, my pay as a wildland firefighter wasn’t much different than it is today, which is totally fucked up and not okay. With the passage of Biden’s Infrastructure Plan, the recent push (by democrats) for a raise in wildland firefighter pay (as well as a name change, from “fire technician” to “firefighter”) can now be called successful. I personally feel suspicious about this pay raise, because of the obtuse wording in the bill regarding pay, which states:
“increase the base salary of a Federal wildland firefighter by the lesser of an amount that is commensurate with an increase of $20,000 per year or an amount equal to 50 percent of the base salary, if the Secretary concerned, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, makes a written determination that the position of the Federal wildland firefighter is located within a specified geographic area in which it is difficult to recruit or retain a Federal wildland firefighter.”
Sorry but…am I reading this right? That these raises will only occur for firefighters that are “located within a specified geographic area in which it is difficult to recruit or retain a Federal wildland firefighter”? And that this designation must be determined (in writing) by not only the Secretary concerned, but also in coordination with the Director of the Office of Personnel Management? That sounds like some bullshit to me (excuse my language). Also, note that this increase only pertains to base salary— so if a GS-2 wildland firefighter (paid $12.33 an hour) were only making base pay (without any overtime or hazard pay) their pay for six months would be $11,836— fifty percent of that is $5,918, which equals $18.33 an hour.
One could argue that a GS-2 doesn’t deserve a big pay bump, but still. $18.33 an hour for a wildland firefighter? When there hasn’t been a significant pay increase in 20 years? I’m dissatisfied. I also want to know— is this a full pay increase? or just a dollar amount tacked onto their pay? This is an important question because if it’s a full pay increase then this new hourly pay rate would be part of their calculated time and a half pay and would significantly increase take-home pay. But if it’s just tacked on, meaning if each firefighter gets a lump sum rather than a true hourly increase, then their overtime rate doesn’t increase.
And again, this pay raise is determined by two parties, meaning more paperwork for everyone involved, and only fore fighters “located within a specific area in which it is difficult to recruit or retain a Federal wildland firefighter.” This is a big loophole, and creates a lot of wiggle room for whoever is determining eligibility.
What else is addressed in the Bill concerning wildland fire?
Ten million acres must be “treated” by September 30, 2027. I hate this language because true ecological abundance and health doesn’t happen through “treatment.” Caring for our landscapes is not a one and done deal. Also, this means that federal entities will be descending on these acres without involvement from the community or community education regarding fires and ecological health.
Wildfire defense grants to communities. The language here again created this idea that wildfire is the enemy and communities need to be defended, when in reality communities need to be resilient, both defended from wildfire and connected to their surrounding landscapes. It would be amazing if there would have been a separate grant for community education re: wildfires and ecological health.
A conversion of a minimum of 1,000 seasonal federal firefighters to permanent status.
A new program to rapidly detect and report wildfire starts.
Mechanical thinning prioritizing the preservation of large trees for ecological health and fire resiliency. Again, this looks good on paper, but thinning has serious consequences for ecological health and creates a dependence on constant mechanical intervention. I’m not saying it shouldn’t happen, just that it should be done in tandem with other mitigation strategies. It bothers me that this is just said, without any caveats, which leaves all tertiary decisions regarding thinning to personal preference.
A bunch of money reserved for pre-commercial thinning.
Two things I like about this Bill: the Secretary of the Interior (Deb Haaland) and the Secretary of Agriculture (Tom Vilsack) are charged with developing strategies to mitigate line-of-duty environmental hazard exposure for firefighters, and “establish programs for permanent, temporary, seasonal, and year-round firefighters to recognize and address mental health needs, including post-traumatic stress disorder care.”
It’s not all terrible, really. Some of the outlined requirements for establishing these mitigations include retaining large trees for fire resilient forests, the requirement that no new permanent roads be built (though unfortunately many temporary roads have caused destruction in the past), and that prioritize old-growth stand composition for ecological and watershed health. There are also reserved dollar amounts for ecological restoration projects as well as for tribal communities to practice ecological restoration on federal lands. The dollar amounts designated towards ecological restoration are much less than those going towards thinning and wildfire defense.
Clearly, I’m skeptical. But also hopeful. We’ll see how this pans out. Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Other News:
A pilot has died in a fatal crash near the Kruger Rock Fire, which is currently burning near Estes Park, CO. Needless to say, it’s unusual (but now usual) for a fire to be burning in November in Estes Park.
Fires reported in Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana after a wind event, combined with drought conditions. One death occurred, though the cause hasn’t been released.
Areas like Washington State and British Columbia are experiencing flood conditions with the Pineapple Express (no, not the kind you smoke) combined with land vulnerable to slides because of summer wildfires.
Be sure to check out these wildland firefighting grants.
The Forest Service confirms it doesn’t have a “let it burn” fire policy. Lol, we know.
Hey y’all, thanks for reading. Give me your opinions. Your thoughts. Your corrections. And please consider becoming a paying subscriber. See you Sunday!