2016-2017
House Bill 2928, also known as the Forest Resiliency Burning Pilot Project, was passed by the Washington State Legislature in the spring of 2016 to assess the benefits of prescribed fire, further understand the impacts of burning on ambient air quality, develop recommendations for continuing or expanding the use of prescribed fire in Washington, and build community understanding and support for prescribed fire.
WRCD, Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Washington Prescribed Fire Council (WPFC) and multiple Forest Collaboratives co-coordinated and facilitated the 2928 Forest Resiliency Pilot Project. A significant portion of the project was devoted to aligning messaging, developing communications, and running locally-led outreach campaigns. In addition to outreach, the project specifically conducted pre-and post-burn fuel inventories, tree damage assessments, and piloted new ideas for smoke management and air quality monitoring.
The WPFC and WRCD convened prescribed burners and air regulators to identify existing barriers and issues to prescribed burning. Additionally, the statewide coordination around messaging, and the community-led outreach, provided a solid set of best practices and working relationships that have supported the dispersion of information and communications about prescribed fire. Much of the learning, tools, and examples created during the project were integrated into the Put Fire to Work outreach toolkit.
Read the full Forest Resiliency Burning Pilot Project: Report to the Legislature
