NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
A2
Friday, November 1, 2019
Tensions lessening between rangeland fire groups, government
By CHRIS BRANAM
For EO Media Group
CORVALLIS — The first
responders to wildfires in
the remote areas of the Great
Basin of Oregon and Idaho
are increasingly volunteer
groups of private landowners
that have been authorized and
trained in partnership with
federal and state agencies.
Rangeland Fire Protection
Associations, which started
in the 1960s in Eastern Ore-
gon but have proliferated in
the region over the last 20
years, are now responsible for
protecting 25.5 million acres
of federal, state and private
land in the Pacific Northwest.
Prior to the formation of these
groups, response to wildfire
was often marked by strife
between ranchers and govern-
ment officials.
Historically, there were
arguments about the author-
ity of federal entities, lack
of local community engage-
ment, or disagreement about
fire response strategies and
tactics. Now, a study led by
Oregon State University finds
these tensions have lessened
— rapidly in Idaho and grad-
ually in Oregon.
The study, published in the
journal Disasters and funded
by the Joint Fire Science Pro-
gram, comes at a time when
wildfires in the Great Basin
have become more destruc-
tive. The Long Draw fire of
OSU Extension Photo/Emily Jane Davis
A rangeland wildfire burns in Wasco County. Rangeland Fire Protection Associations, which started in the 1960s in Eastern
Oregon but have proliferated in the region over the last 20 years, are now responsible for protecting 25.5 million acres of
federal, state and private land in the Pacific Northwest.
fessor and Extension spe-
cialist in OSU’s College of
Forestry. “Every fire where
these folks work together, the
ranchers learn more about fire
and how agencies operate and
the agencies learn more about
what ranchers know about the
land, especially the terrain.
That’s largely positive.”
For their study, the research
team comprised of Davis,
Jesse Abrams, an assistant
professor at the University of
Georgia, and Katherine Woll-
stein, a doctorate student at
2012 in Southeastern Oregon
burned 557,648 acres before it
was contained.
These megafires threaten
and destroy working range-
lands for cattle production;
habitat for species, such as the
greater sage grouse and ungu-
lates; and other values, such
as recreation and the western
culture of the region.
“These relationships are
improving, and with time
they continue to improve,”
said study lead author Emily
Jane Davis, an assistant pro-
the University of Idaho, con-
ducted a thorough examina-
tion and analysis of RFPAs in
the Great Basin region of Ore-
gon and Idaho.
They compiled public doc-
uments, conducted 59 inter-
views with key RFPA, state
and BLM leaders, attended
state-level RFPA meetings in
2016 and 2017, and developed
case studies of four RFPAs
— two in Oregon and two in
Idaho.
Federal government agen-
cies, chiefly the Bureau of
Land Management, man-
age about 70% of rangelands
in the western United States,
where they are responsible for
management as well as wild-
fire suppression. A leasehold
tenure system allows ranch-
ers to graze cattle on fed-
eral lands, so ranchers have
a significant stake in their
management.
Rangeland Fire Protection
Associations typically operate
in rural and remote areas. By
responding to fires when they
are small, RFPAs are intended
BRIEFLY
Forecast for Pendleton Area
TODAY
SATURDAY
Plenty of sun, but
chilly
Plenty of sun, but
cool
47° 24°
50° 27°
SUNDAY
MONDAY
Partly sunny
TUESDAY
Clouds and sun
Partly sunny
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
54° 31°
56° 31°
55° 33°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
48° 20°
50° 24°
54° 28°
56° 30°
56° 32°
OREGON FORECAST
ALMANAC
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Seattle
Olympia
57/36
45/28
49/23
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
46/28
Lewiston
56/30
48/22
Astoria
58/36
Pullman
Yakima 48/23
54/31
47/28
Portland
Hermiston
58/35
The Dalles 48/20
Salem
Corvallis
58/31
Yesterday
Normals
Records
La Grande
49/26
PRECIPITATION
John Day
Eugene
Bend
57/30
51/24
54/28
Ontario
47/18
Caldwell
Burns
45°
17°
58°
36°
73° (1988) 7° (2002)
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
Albany
58/29
0.00"
0.18"
0.72"
4.94"
6.45"
7.28"
WINDS (in mph)
48/19
52/14
0.00"
0.46"
1.05"
11.31"
8.15"
9.99"
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Pendleton 47/23
59/31
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
HERMISTON
Enterprise
47/24
51/26
44°
16°
57°
36°
78° (1901) 14° (2002)
PRECIPITATION
Moses
Lake
54/29
Aberdeen
43/26
47/28
Tacoma
Yesterday
Normals
Records
Spokane
Wenatchee
54/38
Today
67/34
Sat.
NE 3-6
N 4-8
Boardman
Pendleton
Medford
NE 3-6
NNW 4-8
SUN AND MOON
Klamath Falls
61/24
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2019
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
7:34 a.m.
5:42 p.m.
12:35 p.m.
9:26 p.m.
First
Full
Last
New
Nov 4
Nov 12
Nov 19
Nov 26
NATIONAL EXTREMES
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 93° in Immokalee, Fla. Low -14° in Gothic, Colo.
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Whooping cough case at
Portland high school
PORTLAND — The Multnomah
County Health Department has confirmed
a case of whooping cough at a high school
in Portland.
KOIN reported the case was at Grant
High School.
Whooping cough, or pertussis, causes
severe, violent coughing and spreads eas-
ily in groups.
Other signs include cold-like symptoms
like a runny nose but usually no fever.
There is a vaccine for pertussis, but the
health department said it wears off over
time.
OLCC podcasts answer
questions about cannabis
SALEM — The Oregon Liquor Control
Commission has produced a podcast that
focuses on the issues surrounding mari-
juana vaping and the national outbreak of a
respiratory illness.
“In the Weeds – The Ultimate OLCC
Potcast,” is a series aimed at the recre-
ational marijuana industry. The fourth epi-
sode focuses on vaping. Nationwide, more
than 1,600 cases of lung injuries and 34
deaths have been reported, according to the
Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion. Two of the deaths were in Oregon.
The Oregon Court of Appeals temporar-
ily stopped a ban ordered by the governor
on flavored nicotine vaping products. But
a ban on the sale of flavored THC vaping
products approved by the OLCC remains
in effect. It was not covered by the court
ruling.
Recent legal changes have caused con-
fusion in the cannabis industry, and the
podcasts are meant to explain state regu-
lations and laws in a conversational way,
according to the OLCC, which regulates
recreational marijuana. But they are not
meant to replace knowledge of the law, the
agency said in a news release. The podcasts
are available on soundcloud.com and other
locations.
Man who used racial slurs
convicted under bias crime law
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
-10s
-0s
0s
showers t-storms
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
snow
40s
50s
ice
to help prevent large, destruc-
tive rangeland fires that have
become increasingly com-
mon in the Great Basin and
surrounding regions.
The RFPA model is unique
in that it incorporates non-pro-
fessional, non-governmental
entities in wildfire response,
Davis said. RFPAs emerged
due to desires of many ranch-
ers to actively fight fire and
protect their livestock and for-
age, as well as larger policy
and management objectives
including more effective wild-
fire suppression for purposes
including sage grouse habitat
conservation.
As of 2019, Oregon had
24 RFPAs responsible for
protecting 16.5 million acres
of land. Idaho’s program,
established in 2013, has nine
RFPAs covering nearly 9 mil-
lion acres. In Oregon, Idaho
and Nevada, state laws define
and authorize RFPAs. Wash-
ington state has been consid-
ering a similar law. In Jan-
uary 2019, Davis presented
the highlights of a North-
west Fire Science Consortium
report on RFPAs to the Wash-
ington Legislature’s House
Rural Development, Agricul-
ture and Natural Resources
Committee.
Although RFPAs aren’t yet
in Washington, efforts to find
solutions for protecting unpro-
tected and remote rangelands
continue and studies such as
this one may help, Davis said.
60s
cold front
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PORTLAND — A man convicted under
Oregon’s new bias crime law for chasing a
man with a shovel and yelling racial slurs at
him has been sentenced.
The Multnomah County District Attor-
ney’s Office says Eric Eugene Scardino
Jr. pleaded guilty last week to one count
of bias crime and one of unlawful use of
a weapon. He was sentenced to five days
in jail, three years of probation and mental
health and substance abuse evaluations and
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possible treatment.
Portland police said they responded Aug.
29 to a disturbance and found Scardino
holding a raised shovel while approaching
another man.
Officers stopped Scardino from chas-
ing the man and learned that before police
arrived, Scardino had been chasing the
man with the shovel and a knife while yell-
ing racial slurs at the man, who is black.
Scardino is the second person to be con-
victed under Oregon’s “hate crime bill,”
which became law earlier this year.
Public comment on gray wolf
management plan extended
OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washing-
ton Department of Fish and Wildlife has
extended the public comment period for
residents to weigh in on how the state
should manage the gray wolf population.
KING-TV reported the public comment
period has been extended through Nov. 15.
The state has in recent years authorized
killings of wolves or an entire pack in an
effort to stop the wolves from preying on
cattle.
The Profanity Peak wolf pack in 2016
was shot by contractors from helicopters.
Then wolves from the Sherman and Wedge
packs were lethally removed. Members
of the Togo pack were killed in 2018 after
attacks on cattle.
In August and September, the entire
OPT pack and some members of the Grouse
Flats pack were killed for the same reason.
The state canceled wolf-related meet-
ings in August, citing concerns of violence
from people on both sides of the issue.
Severely neglected horses
removed from property
CRESWELL — Authorities say sev-
eral severely neglected horses have been
removed from a property south of Eugene.
The Lane County Sheriff’s Office says
the horses were removed Wednesday by
county Animal Services and other com-
munity partners from the property near
Creswell.
The sheriff’s office says it is working
with multiple agencies on criminal charges
against the woman who owns the animals.
The sheriff’s office says she and her hus-
band had contacts in 2018 with county ani-
mal services about horses in poor condi-
tion and at that time care of the horses was
brought up to a minimum standard.
The current investigation started when
the county’s animal services received
photos in mid-October of horses boarded
at Davies’ property that appeared to be
severely neglected.
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