West govs urge more wildfire funding

NORWOOD, Colo., July 16 (UPI) -- Favorable weather was expected to aid fire crews stretched across the West on Tuesday, but there was growing concern about a shortage of money and experienced manpower on the fire lines.

Montana Gov. Judy Martz testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that while the summer fire season had not yet peaked, western states were already seeing their firefighting war chests dwindle along with their budgets for preventative measures aimed at reducing the risk of future fires.

"Resources must be available to fight fires this summer without disrupting vital proactive work after the fire season has concluded," said Martz, who testified in her capacity as president of the Western Governors Association. "That work, such as thinning and ecosystem restoration, will help to diminish the devastation of future fire seasons."

Forestry officials and western lawmakers had been bracing all year for what was expected to be one of the worst fire seasons ever in the drought-parched mountain forests.

Some 60 fires were burning in the region Tuesday. Although none was a particular threat to large areas of homes and weather conditions were largely favorable, firefighters were finding their manpower, particularly among experienced mid-level fire bosses, being stretched to the limit.

If the shortage grows more severe, fire commanders at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, may consider asking for help from the military or from other countries, such as New Zealand and Canada, spokesman Jack DeGolia said Tuesday.

"As we try to add more crews to the system, this is always a limiting factor," he said. "You need people who know how to lead the firefighters. You can't just pick somebody with a hard hat and send him in there."

The middle managers lead fire crews, coordinate supplies and air operations, and perform other essential command functions on the fire lines. There are more than 21,000 firefighters on duty now to handle any blazes that break out.

As fires are contained, crews are taken off the lines and rested so they will be ready for duty when another blaze erupts. The work, often at high altitude, in oppressive heat and rugged terrain is exhausting for the crews who often work 14 consecutive days before being given a required break.

Although the huge wildfires of recent weeks in Arizona and Colorado have been contained, there were 57 wildfires burning in nine Western states Monday. Recent dry thunderstorms have kicked up new blazes.

"We've been able to catch 99 percent of the new starts so far," DeGolia said.

Cooler weather was forecast Tuesday for much of the West with higher humidity and some wet thunderstorms.

In the record 2000 season, the Boise command center called for help from the military and experienced fire crews from New Zealand, Australia and Canada, but this year the Canadians have their hands full with wildfires in their own country.

About 3.4 million acres has burned this year in the United States, mostly in the Western states. This compares to 2.5 million acres that had burned by this date in 2000 and the 10-year average of 1.6 million acres.

Thirteen fires were burning in Oregon, the most of any state. Large fires were also reported in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming.

In Oregon, the 17,300-acre Eyerly Fire that burned 17 homes last weekend was reported 40 percent contained Tuesday. Residents of the Three Rivers subdivision near Madras, about 80 miles southeast of Portland, were allowed to return home Monday.

In Colorado, the Burn Canyon fire near Norwood on the western slope was only 10 percent contained at 27,000 acres. Engine crews were protecting evacuated structures in Redvale.

Because of the busy season, money to pay for fire suppression has had to come, in part, from fuel reduction programs that thin out the brush and small trees that act as kindling for the devastating crown fires seen last month in Colorado and Arizona, Martz told the Energy Committee.

Arizona's Chediski-Rodeo fire, for example, consumed 468,000 acres and more than 400 homes. Its $102 million toll in insured losses made it the state's second-worst disaster, and direct firefighting costs added another $43 million to the tab.

The fire was also hard on the elk, bears and other creatures of the area. The International Fund for Wildlife Welfare announced Tuesday a $10,000 emergency grant to provide watering stations and food for the animals whose habitat had been blackened.

Some western political leaders have used the fire to call for a more aggressive fuel clearing program and limits to legal challenges.

Environmentalists dispute the notion that they have challenged a significant number of fuel thinning proposals, and Alaska's Sen. Frank Murkowski, the ranking Republican on the Energy Committee, ventured Tuesday that while the General Accounting Office had found that 48-percent of such proposals had been challenged, Washington should not lose sight of the need to do something about the buildup of tinder-dry fuel in the West.

"We can fight over whether or not to count prescribe burns when assessing appeals, but the bottom line is we will not get ahead of this forest health crisis unless we utilize some harvesting to reduce the fuels," Murkowski said. "The fact that 48 percent of these harvest projects are delayed by appeals and litigation is extremely problematic."

"These factors have seriously contributed to the fire problem, and we must devise a plan to fix that problem," Murkowski said. "Mechanical thinning and timber harvesting could decrease the intensity of these fires with great benefit to the land, the fire fighters, and our communities."

Martz agreed, but said that funding shortages this summer were a more immediate concern.

"Without emergency funds we will continue to rob Peter to pay Paul, while perpetuating the mistakes of the last century," she said.

(Reported by Phil Magers in Dallas and Hil Anderson in Los Angeles)