Weekly Column: Honoring Idaho's Wildland Firefighters

The Interagency Wildland Firefighter Monument stands on the grounds of the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise.  NIFC offers a virtual tour of the monument available here: https://www.nifc.gov/wildland-firefighters-monument, and explains, “More than 325 plaques in the monument offer tribute to those the wildland fire community has lost. . . . In the midst of the busy NIFC campus, the monument offers peace, tranquility and a place to reflect, and reminds visitors of those who made the ultimate sacrifice while battling flames, or dedicated long careers to wildland fire management.”  Unfortunately, the recent loss of Juliana Turchetti while battling the Horse Gulch fire in Helena, Montana is a heartbreaking reminder of the dedication and bravery of those who serve as wildland firefighters protecting our communities.

To help recognize the magnitude of this service, I co-sponsored S. 4687, the Wildland Firefighter Congressional Gold Medal Act.  This legislation would award a Congressional Gold Medal to wildland firefighters past, present and future, and the medal would be displayed at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise.  The legislation, which fellow U.S. Senator for Idaho Jim Risch has also co-sponsored, includes the following details about wildland firefighters’ service:

• The Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs collectively employ more than 18,700 wildland firefighters to combat wildfires across millions of acres of public and private lands each year, while thousands more workers and volunteers serve as State, local and contract wildland firefighters;

• Wildland firefighter crews are all-hazards frontline emergency responders who use any means necessary to protect life and property while responding to floods, hurricanes, pandemics and acts of terrorism; and

• Wildland firefighters put their lives on the line to keep the people of the United States safe, and some pay the ultimate sacrifice to do so.  In the past 5 years, 91 wildland firefighters have lost their lives fighting fires.  Acute and secondary effects from wildfire smoke exposure, are directly linked to tens of thousands of firefighter and civilian deaths each year.

I remain committed to advocating for a number of efforts to improve our country’s ability to prevent and respond to wildfires, which includes: 

• Reversing the Cottonwood decision that provides a loophole for outside groups to effectively pause important wildfire restoration and other forestry activity by filing a lawsuit;

• Expediting the environmental review process for projects that remove invasive species and supporting policies that play a vital role in maintaining the economic and environmental well-being of our region;

• Maintaining the availability of prescribed fires and targeted grazing as vital tools for mitigating wildfire risk; and

• Reauthorizing and expanding the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program to support collaborative and community-based forest management.  

With my support, Congress also recently passed and the President signed into law the Fire Grants and Safety Act that reauthorized three grant programs administered by the United States Fire Administration (USFA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).  Idaho fire departments have received grants from these programs that focus on assisting local paid and volunteer fire departments with maintaining readiness.

Many wildland firefighters are far from family and friends as they battle wildfires blazing across our western states, and as the Wildland Firefighter Congressional Gold Medal Act reads, “The outstanding accomplishments of these brave individuals continue an unparalleled legacy of public service.”  As I pray for their safety and work to ensure they have necessary resources and support to suppress fires and improve the health of our forests and grasslands, I also continue to work to ensure their legacy is honored. 

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