Wildland Fire Advisory Committee
With the goal of improving communication and coordination with communities around the state, on December 1, 2015 Commissioner of Public Lands Peter Goldmark appointed Kittitas County Commissioner Gary Berndt to serve as the state's first-ever Wildland Fire Liaison. Berndt is responsible for helping Washington communities identify and best use their firefighting assets to quickly respond to fires. He also will advise state and federal wildfire fighting leaders about concerns of residents and landowners in fire-affected communities.
“Washington is fortunate to have someone of Gary’s extraordinary experience in this important position,” Commissioner Goldmark said. “As a firefighter and an elected leader, Gary has the knowledge to help us face the challenge of wildfire in local communities.”
In December 2015, Goldmark appointed the state's first-ever Wildland Fire Advisory Committee. This committee consists of individuals from all over the state, representing different constituencies. For more information on the committee, see House Bill 2093.
Legislative Report for ESHB 2093
See a high-level summary of the recommendations to the Legislature.
View the December 2015 report to the Commissioner of Public Lands from the Wildland Fire Liaison.
2006 Strategic Plan for Wildland Fire Protection
DNR completed the strategic plan in 2006. Early in 2017, Commissioner Franz tasked the WFAC to evaluate the strategic plan for its relevance to the current conditions of firefighting and provide feedback. The Committee completed it’s work and provided recommendations in July, 2017.
Mission Statement
It is the purpose of the Wildland Fire Advisory Committee to advise the Commissioner of Public Lands on all matters related to wildland firefighting and fire issues in the state, including but not limited to developing recommendations regarding capital budget requests related to fire and developing strategies to enhance the safe and effective use of private and public wildland firefighting resources. To further define the role and direction of the WFAC, Commissioner Franz signed a Charter for the Committee.
If you have questions or need more information about the work of the Wildland Fire Liaison or the Wildland Fire Advisory Committee, please contact committee coordinator Tami Kellogg at 360-902-2122 or tami.kellogg@dnr.wa.gov.
Wildland Fire Advisory Committee
2018 MEETINGS
April 25, 2018
Minutes
March 28, 2018
2017 MEETINGS
September 27, 2017
August 23, 2017
July 26, 2017
Cancelled
February 22, 2017
January 25, 2017
2016 MEETINGS
December 2016
No Meeting
