It might seem counter-intuitive, but fire itself is an essential part of restoring our forests to better health. Controlled, prescribed burning can help prevent catastrophic wildfires like the ones we’ve been seeing with alarming frequency in recent years.
Later this month, professional firefighters from across our region will gather to learn all about fighting “bad fire” with “good fire” – the prescribed kind. Together with the Washington Prescribed Fire Council, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the USDA Forest Service, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Fire Learning Network, we are hosting the 2019 Spring Cascadia Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (TREX) from April 28 – May 10 in the Central Cascades.
During Cascadia TREX, prescribed fire experts will equip professionals from nine county, state, federal, tribal and private firefighting agencies and organizations with the skills and knowledge they need to apply prescribed burns. Prescribed fire helps restore our forests to more resilient conditions – conditions under which, if a wildfire were to occur, it would be less likely to devastate the forest ecosystem, force people from their homes and cause weeks of choking smoke.
To learn more about the 2019 Spring Cascadia TREX, visit our partners at the Department of Natural Resources.
For real-time TREX information from April 28-May 10, visit the Washington Prescribed Fire Council’s Facebook page.
