The December Driptorch Digest is Now Available!

Join fire practitioners, researchers and land managers in New Orleans on December 2-6, 2025 for the 11th International Fire Ecology and Management Congress, hosted by the Association for Fire Ecology (AFE). The conference will feature presentations, breakout sessions, workshops, and field trips highlighting fire ecology, management, and innovation. With more than 600 people registered, this conference provides a unique opportunity to learn from leading experts and share experiences across diverse ecosystems.

For the Southeast prescribed burning community, a special highlight is the December 4th "PBA Takeover", where private lands burners, prescribed burn associations (PBAs), researchers, and land managers will convene for a full day of sessions, networking, and mixers focused on prescribed fire on private lands. Attendees will gain insights directly relevant to fire-dependent ecosystems, wildlife habitat restoration, and strategies for reducing wildfire risk in our region. In addition to the PBA Takeover, there will also be private lands-focused Fire Circles and sessions as well as a presentation on post-hurricane fire regimes and management implications. See you in NOLA!

The aftermath of Hurricane Helene has left much of the South at increased risk for wildfires. The storm caused widespread damage, leaving behind downed trees and debris that have heightened wildfire potential across several states and will continue to affect the Southeast for years to come. In western North Carolina, larger fuel loads from ground debris has lead to heightened wildfire risk.

The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) has forecasted above-normal wildfire risk for the region this fall and into early winter, particularly in areas affected by the hurricane. The U.S. Forest Service is closely monitoring conditions and urging caution with prescribed burns. The storm’s impact on the landscape, especially the abundance of fallen trees and debris, requires careful planning to reduce wildfire risks while maintaining forest health.

For more forecasts and information on wildfire potential, visit NIFC’s predictive services outlook.

The updated Tall Timbers Research Station Prescribed Burn Planner is now available! The program now combines weather, smoke modeling, burn unit polygons, and notifications to provide a comprehensive digital tool for burn planning. Designed to support private landowners and fire practitioners, the tool helps users set ideal conditions, track completed burns, and adapt practices over time. For practitioners in the Southeast, this "one-stop shop" boosts efficiency and safety in conducting prescribed burns across longleaf, flatwoods, and other fire-adapted ecosystems.

The Southern Blue Ridge Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (SBR TREX) is a two-week, hands-on training program launched in 2018 that brings together fire professionals and practitioners to deepen their skills in planning and conducting ecologically based prescribed burns. Through experiential learning, participants engaged in operational assignments, community outreach, and monitoring to better restore fire-adapted ecosystems. SBR TREX provided a valuable peer-to-peer environment to build capacity, share best practices, and strengthen collaboration across agencies and landscapes. This year, 65 participants burned 554 acres across North and South Carolina!

A recent Rapid Lesson Sharing report from the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center describes a California burn where nighttime relative humidity recoveries repeatedly differed from National Weather Service (NWS) spot forecasts, causing hotter than expected overnight fire activity until a major weather shift arrived. Portable onsite observations, including those from Remote Access Weather Stations, proved essential for understanding a local ridgetop microclimate that the forecast could not capture. For burn managers, this highlights the value of supplementing spot forecasts with your own unit-level weather monitoring and proactively communicating with NWS when conditions on the ground do not match predictions, especially in complex terrain or during marginal burn windows.

A new documentary will have a sneak peek at the 11th International Fire Ecology and Management Congress in New Orleans on December 5th! Young Fires: The Future of Firelighting follows young wildland firelighters across the Southeast as they train in the demanding work of prescribed fire and explore its ecological, historical, and cultural significance. The documentary highlights how prescribed fire restores ecosystems, supports wildlife, and reduces extreme wildfire risk, while showcasing the next generation of conservation leaders learning from seasoned professionals.

New data show that the U.S. Forest Service is nearly 38% behind its typical rate for hazardous fuel treatments this year, following major staff and budget cuts under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). These cuts are hampering vital tools like prescribed fire and thinning, which are essential in the Southeast for maintaining longleaf pine forests, protecting wildlife, and reducing future wildfire risk. Without these fuel treatments and with increased fuel loading in the Southeast from Hurricane Helene, communities will be at greater risk for wildfire.

What do you wish alerts told you during a wildfire emergency? The University of Georgia Institute for Disaster Management, along with the USDA Forest Service, is seeking individuals to provide feedback on wildfire emergency alerts. Your feedback can help us improve the way emergency notifications are written and shared nationwide.

The Fireside Chats are interactive, virtual conversations designed to gather feedback from the public about emergency alerts. The chats are open to all, and we are seeking individuals from all backgrounds to share their perspective.

Help make alerts clearer, faster and more informative
Peek behind the scenes of crisis communications
Join an open, meaningful conversation
Let your voice be heard

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)

Fire Adapted Communities Network Project Implementation Awards

The Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network (FAC Net) is accepting proposals from active network members through its annual Project Implementation Awards.
Funding priorities are:
1. Active management projects, especially those using an all-lands strategy in high wildfire risk landscapes.
2. Work that promotes local and regional partnerships and community engagement, and that is collaborative, cross-boundary, multi-sector and/or cross-scalar in nature.
3. Wildland fire workforce and/or local leader development, experiential training, practitioner exchanges, and tribal engagement and partnerships.
4. Community wildfire protection or other spatial fire planning projects that result in project identification and prioritization to promote fire adapted communities with a safety and resiliency focus.
5. Smoke preparedness and mitigation projects.
6. Structure assessments and hardening education and capacity building for professionals, or modeling and community assessments. (*Note: Funding not available to retrofit structures).
Award amounts: $10,000-$50,000
Application deadline: December 23, 2025

Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund

NFWF is accepting proposals through its Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund to restore, enhance, and conserve longleaf pine and bottomland hardwood ecosystems.

On-the-ground restoration (planting, site prep)
Prescribed burning and stand improvement
Understory habitate restoration
Technical assistance, outreach, and capacity building
Species recovery, monitoring, and planning
Conservation easements / land protection (limited)

Award amounts: $250,000-$2,000,000
Application deadline: January 29, 2025

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.

NC State University promotes equal opportunity and prohibits discrimination and harassment based upon one’s race; color; religion (including belief and non-belief); sex, including but not limited to pregnancy, childbirth, or other related medical condition, parenting, and sexual harassment; sexual orientation; actual or perceived gender identity; age; national origin; disability; veteran status; or genetic information.

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.