The long-term habitat impacts of the DOI USWFS merger

[Justabirdwatcher]

I'm kind of surprised nobody here is talking about the potential habitat impacts brought on by moving all the DOI (and potentially FS) fire programs into the new USWFS.

Does anyone here think that a stand-alone organization, focused primarily on wildfire suppression, will even come close to delivering the amount of prescribed fire on the ground that these agencies have in the past? There are literally hundreds of thousands of acres burned under prescription every year by agency fire personnel. Those burns are essential to so many habitats and wildlife that depend on them. Without that prescribed fire, many of those habitats would be completely lost, some forever. Call me a cynic, but I think we're about to see the single largest reduction in acres of wildlife habitat treatment in the history of the U.S.

I sure hope I'm wrong.

 

[Chrstn]

You raise a really important point, and it’s surprising more people aren’t talking about it
A suppression focused agency like the USWFS could easily sideline prescribed fire, even though it’s one of the most critical tools for maintaining healthy ecosystems. Prescribed burns aren’t just “extra work” they’re essential for species that depend on fire adapted habitats and for preventing catastrophic wildfires in the first place. If organizational priorities shift toward emergency response only, it’s hard to imagine prescribed fire receiving the same funding, staffing, or institutional support it does now under DOI and FS programs
Your concern about a historic reduction in habitat treatment is very realistic
Unless prescribed fire is explicitly protected and resourced in this new structure, the ecological consequences could be huge and long lasting.
Let’s hope decision makers recognize that wildfire management isn’t just about putting fires out it’s also about using fire wisely to keep landscapes alive