The July Driptorch Digest is Now Available!

In November 2024, wildfire managers, prescribed fire practitioners, researchers, air quality professionals, and public health officials gathered at the SERPPAS Southern Regional Wildland Fire Smoke Workshop, held in Raleigh, NC, to discuss the public health impacts of smoke from prescribed fire and wildfires in the Southern region.

As a result of that workshop, the Southeast Smoke Management Outreach for Public Health Working Group was formed to explore opportunities for improving regional education and outreach materials on the public health impacts of prescribed fire and wildfire smoke.

The Southern Group of State Foresters and regional work group partners have launched a centralized Public Health & Smoke Management Outreach Resource Inventory, aggregating templates, handouts, graphics, videos, and more to support public education on the public health impacts of smoke from wildland fire. This shared library strengthens consistent messaging about health impacts, smoke notifications, and mitigation strategies. The resources will be collected over the next few months, and will be made publicly available. If you have any public health and smoke-related outreach materials to share, please fill out the form below!

The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) has announced the 2025 Week of Remembrance will be June 30-July 6. This week is an annual observance established to honor wildland firefighters who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
This partnership between the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center and the 6 Minutes for

Safety Subcommittee combines honoring the fallen with valuable safety lessons for today’s firefighters to learn from past tragedies and improve safety on the fireline. By fostering collective reflection and education, the Week of Remembrance aims to make firelines safer while respecting the sacrifices made by those who came before.

Take "6 Minutes for Safety" and review these important safety resources:

America’s Longleaf Restoration Initiative and the Longleaf Partnership Council released its 2024 Range‑wide Accomplishment Report, marking two major milestones: over 2 million acres of longleaf pine planted or restored and a record 2.2 million acres treated with prescribed fire during the fiscal year. These efforts are part of a broader trend—since 2010, more than 20 million acres of longleaf habitat have been maintained with fire, reflecting a long-term, coordinated push to restore this iconic southern ecosystem.

NC State University Forest Management students recently completed Fire Week during their summer practicum, a hands-on training experience in the NC Sandhills where they helped implement 939 acres of prescribed burns in just four days. Already certified as NWCG Firefighter Type 2 Crewmembers, the students worked alongside professionals from agencies like NC Wildlife Resources Commission, NC State Parks, the Sandhills PBA, and The Nature Conservancy. In addition to burning, they learned about fuels, fire behavior, planning, and fireline culture—preparing them for future roles in Southeastern fire management.

A recent article from the Nature Conservancy describes a new milestone reached by the organization: 500,000 acres of prescribed fire in North Carolina. This milestone further emphasizes the essential role of prescribed fire in restoring and maintaining North Carolina’s longleaf pine ecosystems. With over 500,000 acres burned in the state, these low-intensity, carefully planned fires have helped support biodiversity, reduce wildfire risk, and promote healthy forest growth.

A recent feature on fire festivals in the Florida Forests magazine highlight their importance in prescribed fire outreach. Fire festivals are emerging across the United States as vibrant community events that combine education, entertainment, and live prescribed burns to build public understanding and support for fire’s crucial role in ecosystem health. By bringing people close to the flames and sharing fire’s ecological story, these events strengthen community connections to prescribed fire and promote safer, healthier landscapes.

Private lands burners and Prescribed Burn Associations (PBAs) will take center stage at the International Fire Ecology & Management Congress on December 4, with a full day of sessions, workshops, fire circles, and a lively evening mixer. It's a chance to celebrate private lands fire, connect with others in the fire community, and share your local efforts with a global audience. One-day registration and travel scholarships for PBA members may be available—submit your presentation abstract by July 15!

Multiple NRCS Funding Programs

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service offers several funding programs that may be used to support prescribed burning. Many private landowners in the South have already taken advantage of these programs but this year there may be more funding available than in previous years. Programs vary by area, so check out the information pages listed below:
Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)
Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP)
Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP)

The Driptorch Digest is distributed by NC State University as a project of the Southeast Regional Partnership for Planning and Sustainability (SERPPAS) Prescribed Fire Working Group.

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This newsletter is made possible through a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, with support from the USDA Forest Service and the Department of Defense.