John McColgan
OLLI Living with Fire at Home and in the Landscape, Spring 2021
Co-hosted by Charisse Sydoriak and Mary Kwart
Class reference materials
Course Syllabus PDF
Glossary
Contractors Recommended by Class Participants
Session 0: Course Introduction
Videos
- Oregon’s OSU Extension Webinar Series “Wildfire Wednesdays”, 37:57 min
- “Wildfires and Us”, 3:01 min
- Oregon Forest Facts Breaks, 1:40 min
- PBS’s Frontline “Fire in Paradise, 54:17 min
- Fire Wars video from PBS Nova – online Jackson County Library Services stream-able, 1:55 hr
- “Fire on the Mountain” 2001 History Channel special
- Introduction to Combustion – 1, 7:04 min
Class Materials
Session 1: Why do fires burn the way they do?, 4/5
Upcoming Webinars
2020 Fire Season Statistics
- Fire Statistics Handout
- 2020 Fire Season Story Map for Oregon–“After the Fire”
- Homeland Security Digital Link to Western United States Wildfires
- ODF Fire History 1911 – 2020
- ODF Siege Map
- Wildfires on the West Coast Satellite Photo
- Fire Statistics, US Congress, 2021
The 2020 Almeda Fire
- KDRV News; Sept 10– Police: Almeda Fire’s origin
- Sky News; Sept 11, 2020–Police suspect ‘human element’
- BBC News; Sept 10; US West Coast wildfires
- New York Times – The Almeda Fire – 4:12 min
- The Oregonian: Almeda fire 100% contained
- Mapping the Almeda Fire’s growth
- Jackson County Damage Assessment Dashboard
- Things that do not burn – Almeda fire story telling, 1:31:56 hr
Fire Dynamics
- High Country News – Inside the firestorm
- Today’s wildfire modeling ‘just sucks’ for flames fueled by climate change
- Introduction to Wildland Fire S-190 course materials
- Intermediate Wildland Fire S-290 course materials
- The Rothermel Fire Spread model still running like a champ
- We know climate change set the conditions for Oregon fires. Did it stoke the flames, too?
- Be Ember Prepared, 26:53 min
- Jack Cohen describes home combustion process 19:26 min
- Ember Shower, 4:17 min
- Introduction to Combustion – 1 7:04 min
- “Wildfires and Us”, 3:01 min
Class Materials
- Class 1 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Intro and Fire Stats
- Class 1 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Fire Behavior
- Interest Poll Results
- Class 1 Recording, 1:48:41 hr
Session 2: How to Assess Wildfire Risk, 4/12
Events This Week
- Wildfire Wednesdays: Building community for wildfire resilience, 4/14/2021, 12pm to 1pm
- Webinar – Indigenous Use of Prescribed Fire and Tanoak, 4/15/2021, 7pm to 8:30pm
- Ashland Film Festival 2021 (VIRTUAL: April 15-29; LIVE: June 24-28)
Risk Assessment
- WFAP Home Assessment Checklist
- Wildfire Home Assessment and Checklist
- Wildfire safety campaign home hardening, evacuation prep
- Preparing Homes for Wildfire
- Wildfire Ember Highlights, 4:17 min
- Be Ember Aware
Vulnerable Populations
- Wildfire Today, Vulnerable Populations
- Oregon Lawmakers Approve Bill To Turn Hotels And Motels Into Housing, Shelters
- Additional Links
Class Materials
- Class 2 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Intro
- Class 2 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Katie Gibble
- Class 2 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Vulnerable Populations
- Class 2 Recording, 1:54:48 hr
Session 3: How to Reduce Wildfire Risks on your Property, 4/19
Events This Week
Introduction to Risk Reduction
- Be Ember Aware
- Community destruction during extreme wildfires
- Fire Management Today – Communities Adapting to Wildland Fire
- IBHS Wildfire Home Assessment and Checklist
- WFAP Home Assessment Checklist
- FEMA – Avoiding Wildfire Damage: A Checklist for Homeowners
Home-hardening
- Tri-Lakes WFAP How to Home Harden
- Home Design and Retrofitting Techniques for Wildfire Defense
- James Hardie Siding in Oregon Wildfire Prone Regions
- JPR broadcast on resistance to new building codes
- Home Ignition Zone: Assessment Details
- NFPA Your Home and Wildfire, 3:56 min
- Wildfire Hazard Mitigation Construction Guide for Wildfire Hazard Zones
- Retrofitting your Home to Increase Wildfire Survival, 56:32 min
- Reducing Home Vulnerabilities – S Quarles
Defensible Space
- 5 steps to Creating Defensible Space; Sept 2020 54-min seminar
- Rogue Valley ODF Defensible Space Handout
- Reduce Fire Risk on your Forest Property
Firewise Landscaping
- Ashland USDA Hardiness Zone 8a
- Ashland Garden Club Plants for Southern Oregon
- Ashland’s Prohibited Plants List
- Choosing the Right Plants for Northern Nevada High Fire Hazard Areas
- Fire resistant Plants of Oregon
- Fire resistant SW Oregon shrubs and trees for privacy
- Fire Resistant Native Plants of California, Univ. of Cal. Extension
- Fire Resistant Plants of Colorado
- Fire and Deer Resistant Native Plants
- Fire Resistant Plants for Home Landscapes
- The Combustibility of Landscape Mulches
- Thin for Quality and Health, Not Spacing
- Firewise Landscaping Checklist
- Firewise landscape materials El Paso County Irene Shonle
Class Materials
- Class 3 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Risk Reduction
- Class 3 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Prioritization and Obstacles
- Class 3 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Property Case Study
- Class 3 Recording, 1:31:01 hr
Other
- Ashland to receive $3 million FEMA grant for wildfire preparedness
- Wildfire Home Assessment and Checklist
- Your Home Can Survive a Wildfire, 13:19 min
- Fire Adapted Community Video, 5:04 min
- Preparing Fences and Decks for Wildfire, 0:57 min
- Preparing the Home Exterior for Wildfire, 1:11 min
- Preparing Your Landscape for Wildfire, 2:17 min
- Understanding the Wildfire Risk of the Surrounding Landscape, 0:56 min
Session 4: How to Prepare for a Worst-case Wildfire Scenario, 4/26
Events This Week
- Wildfire Wednesday Session “Ready, Set, Go!”, April 28, 12pm to 1pm
- Wildfire insurance town hall zoom meeting, April 29, 12pm to 1pm
- Phoenix Community Virtual Town Hall Meeting April 29, 6 PM. Almeda Fire Discussion: Where are we in our recovery?
- Ashland’s Green Debris Drop-off Day, May 2, 8:30am -3:30pm
- Ashland Film Festival 2021 (VIRTUAL: April 15-29; LIVE: June 24-28)
Fire Traditions, Narratives, and Myths
Catastrophic Wildfires
- Minute By Minute: What Happened In The Camp Fire, 22:26 min broadcast
- New Timeline of Deadliest California Wildfire
- This is a worst-possible wildfire scenario for Southern California
Disaster Preparedness
- Steve Weyer’s Disaster Preparedness Website
- Before Wildfire Strikes! A Handbook for Homeowners and Communities in Southwest Oregon, OSU, December 2015
- Jackson County Integrated Fire Plan 2006
- Disaster Preparedness: Emergency vs. Disaster
- Ashland
- Jackson County
- Oregon
- National
Air Quality Smoke Impacts
Evacuation
- Summary of Local Evacuation Preparedness Info
- Case studies of large outdoor fires involving evacuations, February 2021
- Evaluating Rural Pacific Northwest towns for wildfire evacuation vulnerability Webinar, May 12, 10am
- Evacuation Process: Ready, Set, Go:
- Ashland Neighborhood Maps
- Once you’re out of your neighborhood: Evacuation Routes by Ashland Jim
- Make a Plan – ready.gov
- CERT wildfire evacuation with animals, 1:05 min
- JPR – New Statewide Emergency Alert System On Tap In Oregon
Insurance coverage
- Preparedness Tips from the Trenches, 52:01 min
- Overcoming Insurance and Recovery Obstacles, 1:20:04 hr
- How to Survive the Home Insurance Crisis, 1:28:57 hr
- Smoke, Ash, and Soot, 1:41:44 hr
- Nevada’s Insurance Industry’s Perspective on Insurance and Wildfire 45:45 min seminar
Class Materials
- Class 4 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Preparing for a Worst Case Scenario
- Class 4 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Fire Myths
- Class 4 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Smoke and Evacuation_Katies Powerpoint
- Class 4 Recording, 1:54:26 hr
- Class 4 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Insurance Myths and Best Practices
References
Session 5: Living with Wildfire — What it Means to be a Fire-adapted Community, 5/3
Events This Week
- Ashland Advisory: Prepare Your Landscaping for Wildfire this May!
- May 6 — 6:00-7:00pm; Ashland Spring Wildfire Preparedness Campaign Webinar; Working with your neighbors to reduce wildfire risk
Communications Theory
- Best practices in risk and crisis communication
- Nudging: A Very Short Guide
- Ernesto Sirolli: Want to help someone? Shut up and listen!, 17:10 min
- Sarah McCaffery: Wildfire Keynote at Stanford University 2020, 1:27:37 hr
Fire-Adapted Communities
- Fire Management Today – Communities Adapting to Wildland Fire
- What Is a Fire Adapted Community? with Animated Video
- Ashland 2021 Spring Campaign & WRAP
- Building Community for Wildfire Resistance; OSU Extension Webinar; 4/14/2021, 52:40 min
- Asset Based Community Development Mapping Toolkit
- Developing Community Connections with Asset Mapping
- Living with Fire Organization Managed by the University of Nevada in Reno
- Planning the Wildland-Urban Interface, APA
- Forest and Fire Toolkit – Rural Living in the Siskiyou Mountains
Firefighting Realities
- 1994 South Canyon Fire on Storm King Mountain – 14 Fatalities, 1:21:37 hr
- Overstretched wildland firefighters risk lung, heart maladies
- Not enough is known about smoke’s impacts on wildland firefighter’s health
- Study shows firefighter’s exposure to smoke increases disease risks
- Wildland firefighter smoke exposure and risk lung cancer and cardiovascular disease mortality
- Modern wildfires pose new health risks for firefighters
Local Fire History
Fire as a Resource Management Tool
- Fire: an important management tool
- Options for Prescribed Fire on Private Lands in Oregon; OSU Ext Chris Adlam presenting; 1:05:39
- Biochar for Small Woodland Owners, 1:21:08 hr
- Bill introduced to promote prescribed fire intends to reduce fire risk – Wildfire Today.pdf
- Mary Kwart Essay on “Why I Burn”
- Lomakatsi secures $2.6 million for wildfire work – Ashland Tidings
Class Materials
- Class 5 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Fire Adapted Communities Introduction
- Class 5 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Firefighting Realities – Kelly Burns
- Class 5 PowerPoint Slides (PDF) – Fire and Forest Management Rogue Basin – Kerry Metlen
- Class 5 Recording, 2:07:42 hr
Session 6: The Wildfire Paradox, 5/10
Events This Week and Beyond
- Ashland Advisory: Prepare Your Landscaping for Wildfire this May!
- May 12th, 10:00am Webinar: Evaluating Rural Pacific Northwest towns for wildfire evacuation vulnerability. Northwest Fire Science Consortium Webina; Alex Dye, OSU
- May 13, 11:30-1:00pm (Nevada time); Wildfire Evacuation Preparedness, Nevada Extension Services; Nevada Wildfire Preparedness Campaign 2021
- May 20, 6 – 7:30 pm Weather Patterns for Fire Season 2021 Webinar; Brett Lutz, Lead Forecaster at the Medford National Weather Forecast Office
- June 5th, 8am – 5pm, $20 Jackson County Friends of the Animal Shelter, By Appointment Low-Cost CHIP-A-THON
- June 10th, 6:00-7:00PM Ashland Spring Wildfire Preparedness Campaign Webinar; Learning from experience: How to prepare for evacuation
- July 1st: 6:00-7:00PM Ashland Spring Wildfire Preparedness Campaign Webinar; Protecting your health during times of smoke
Wildfire Paradox
- Burning Questions; America’s Fight with Nature’s Fires, 2002; by David Carle. Praeger Publishers, Westport Connecticut. Greenwood Publishing Group. 298 pages
- Vicki Christiansen Wildfire Paradox
- A Fire Imagined Essay about parenting a wildfire
- What Is Limiting More Flexible Fire Management
- National Cohesive Wildfire Management Strategy
- Golden, Other Legislators Seek Scrutiny Of Post-Fire Timber Cutting
- OPFC Liability Private Land Sep 2020
Impacts of Climate Change
- Fire Chiefs on the Impacts of Climate Change on Wildfires.mp4
- New York Times – Worst Fire Year on Record
- Reuter’s Age of the “Megafires”
- Hessburg, and others; Front. Ecol. Evol., 10 July 2019 | Climate, Environment, and Disturbance History Govern Resilience of Western North American Forests
- Yale Climate Connections: Reviewing the horrid global 2020 wildfire season
- Western U.S. may be entering its most severe drought in modern history, CBS News
- One Foot in the Black Podcast nn min
Fire Ecology
- Introduction to Fire Ecology, 7:59 min
- Understanding Forest Ecology: Fire, Water, and Bark Beetles, 6:14 min
- Basics of Fire Ecology; California Fire Science Consortium, 21:38 min
- Ecological Society of America publication on fire ecology
- OSU Extension Module on “Fire Ecology”
- Keeley Syphard 19 CA fuel-dominated vs. wind-dominated fires.pdf
Indigenous Use of Fire
- Forgotten Fires.pdf
- March 30 2021 OLLI Class on Native American Burning in the Rogue Valley.mp4, 1:28:22 hr
- Indigenous Peoples Burning Network
- Cultural Fire Management Council
Class Materials
- Class 6 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Intro to Climate Change Impacts
- Class 6 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Indigenous Burning Ecology – Chris Adlam
- Class 6 Powerpoint Slides (PDF) – Navigating the Wildfire Paradox on Federal Lands
- Interest Poll Results
- Class 6 Recording, 1:47:30 hr
Additional Resources
Fire Research / Science Newsletter Links
Living with Fire at Home and in the Landscape 