News Archive

You are viewing ARCHIVED content published online before January 20, 2025. Please note that this content is NOT UPDATED and links may not work. For current information, visit https://www.doi.gov/wildlandfire/newsroom.

The Office of Wildland Fire Quarterly Bulletin (content.govdelivery.com)

06/06/2022

The spring 2022 edition of the Office of Wildland Fire's quarterly newsletter discusses the President's proposal for increased wildland fire management funding in 2023, a streamlined occupational illness claims process for wildland firefighters, Interior's five-year plan to address wildfire risk, and more.

Homes burned in the 2020 Almeda Fire, Oregon. Photo by Ahturner through Adobe Stock.

In the News: Is Your House at Risk of a Wildfire? This Online Tool Could Tell You (www.npr.org)

05/16/2022

Even with thousands of homes destroyed by wildfires every year, most people who move receive little or no information about the risk they're taking on. Now, a nonprofit research group is releasing a first-of-its-kind tool for homeowners. It shows more than 30 million homes in the lower 48 states (20 percent of houses) have a measurable risk of being hit with a wildfire, and 1.5 million properties have a greater than 26 percent chance of burning over the next 30 years.

Flames rise from the 2021 Ford Corkscrew Fire in Washington State at night. Photo by KS Brooks, USFWS.

In the News: Massive Wildfires Helped Fuel Global Forest Losses in 2021 (www.washingtonpost.com)

05/02/2022

Around the globe, 2021 brought more devastating losses for the world's forests, according to a new survey. Fires accounted for more than a third of the world's tree cover losses last year, the largest share on record.

Silhouetted firefighters. Photo by USDA.

In the News: Department Of Labor Announces Streamlined Claims Process for Federal Firefighters with Certain Occupational Illnesses (www.dol.gov)

04/26/2022

The U.S. Department of Labor issued a policy bulletin announcing changes by its Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs to assist federal firefighters with certain occupational illnesses by making it easier for claimants to file certain claims and improving transparency in how claims are processed.

In the News: President Biden Signs Executive Order to Strengthen America’s Forests, Boost Wildfire Resilience, and Combat Global Deforestation (bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov)

04/22/2022

On Earth Day, President Biden signed an Executive Order to expand his Administration’s historic and bold efforts to tackle the climate crisis, make our nation more resilient to extreme weather, and strengthen local economies.

Smoke rising from the Tamarack Fire. Photo by the Forest Service.

In the News: Pacific Northwest Wildfires Alter Air Pollution Patterns Across North America (news.ucar.edu)

04/22/2022

Increasingly large and intense wildfires in the Pacific Northwest are altering the seasonal pattern of air pollution and causing a spike in unhealthy pollutants in August, new research finds. The smoke is undermining clean air gains, posing potential risks to the health of millions of people, according to the study.

Firefighters walk through smoke and extinguish flames at the Lava Fire.

Secretary Haaland Highlights Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Wildfire Response Investments in Colorado (www.doi.gov)

04/12/2022

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland visited Colorado, where she and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack met with federal wildland fire leadership to discuss local, state, and federal wildland fire preparedness and response that will be bolstered by historic investments through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The glow of the 2020 Inchelium Complex Fire in Washington at night. Photo by KS Brooks, FWS.

In the News: U.S. Fires Quadrupled in Size, Tripled in Frequency in 20 Years (eos.org)

04/11/2022

Throughout the 2000s, fires increased in number, size, and frequency across the contiguous United States compared with the previous two decades, new research has shown. These fire pattern changes, which threaten human and ecosystem health, are attributed to a combination of climate change impacts and human expansion into new and burnable land.

Interior Department Releases Five-Year Monitoring, Maintenance and Treatment Plan to Address Wildfire Risk (www.doi.gov)

04/04/2022

President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides $1.5 billion to the Department of the Interior’s Wildland Fire Management Program to address wildfire risk and prepare communities and ecosystems against the threat of wildfire by making historic investments in forest restoration, hazardous fuels management and post-wildfire restoration. Today, the Department released a roadmap for achieving these objectives in coordination with federal, non-federal, and Tribal partners.

President’s 2023 Budget Proposes Significant Investments to Address the Nation’s Wildfire Crisis

03/28/2022

The Biden-Harris Administration today submitted to Congress the President’s Budget for fiscal year 2023. It proposes a significant increase for the Department of the Interior’s Wildland Fire Management Program to address the effects of climate change and the impacts of wildfires on public health, communities, and natural and cultural resources.

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