The Driptorch Digest is Now Available!

North Carolina Virtual RT-130

The North Carolina Prescribed Fire Council has partnered to post a virtual RT-130 Wildland Fire Safety Annual Refresher on the Wildland Fire Learning Portal. While created to focus on North Carolina, the course is open to other states. Those wishing to take the training will need to login or create an account and select RT-130 Wildland Fire Safety Training Annual Refresher- NC State Parks 2022. The course is self-paced and the course key to access is NCPFC2022. Students must provide proof of a successful fire shelter deployment conducted in-person. The course will be posted on the portal through January 28, 2022.

Image: Participants deploy practice fire shelters at a Raleigh, NC event in December 2021 Photo by Laurel Kays

Federal Affairs

Several recent developments within federal agencies will impact wildland fire management:

The Biden Administration issued a memo to the heads of departments and agencies instructs those entities to recognize Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge (ITEK) as an important body of knowledge. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the White House Council on Environmental Quality are initiating a process to develop
government-wide guidance for Federal agencies on ITEK, with Tribal consultation and drawing on the important work that has already occurred at a number of agencies and within Tribal Nations and Native communities.
FEMA, USDA, and DOI have established a joint Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission. The commission will built on the work of existing efforts such as the Wildland Fire Leadership Council, and is tasked with recommending federal policies and strategies to more effectively prevent, mitigate, suppress and manage wildland fires, including rehabilitating land affected from wildland fires.

Building Resilience Around Military Installations

The Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) Program has released a guide to Building Resilience to Climate Change Through Off-Base Natural Infrastructure Solutions. The document can be downloaded directly from the interactive primer website or hard copies can be mailed free of charge. Those who would like a hard copy can email osd.repi@mail.mil with your name, address, quantity of primers, and a "need-by" date, if applicable. The REPI office will begin mailing copies out in early January 2022.

Due to technical issues, the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program will now accept applications through January 21, 5:00 PM ET. All applicants will automatically be granted this extension.

EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning & Standards (OAQPS) is soliciting applications through February 25 from eligible entities to conduct ambient air monitoring of pollutants of greatest concern in communities with environmental and health outcome disparities stemming from pollution and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund request for proposals (RFP) for 2022 will be released in early to mid-January 2022, with proposals due in early to mid-March 2022. This is an adjustment from previous RFP cycles and we wanted to provide notice so that you may plan accordingly. Funding decisions will be announced in August 2022.