Temporary reduction in the Industrial Fire Precaution Level
By Paul Hall on Wednesday, August 4th, 2021 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
EASTERN OREGON – (Information provided by the U.S. Forest Service) The Industrial Fire Precaution Levels (IFPLs) for Wallowa and Whitman Units are moving to Level II in response to higher fuel moisture levels thanks to last weekend’s rain as well as weather forecasted later this week.
Energy Release Component (ERC) and Ignition Component (IC) indices – which measure the seasonal energy release when vegetation burns and the potential for a fire to ignite – both dropped with the rain and higher humidity that visited much of northeast Oregon over the weekend. See the red line in the ERC chart below. However, fire danger remains within the average range for this time of the summer. The current reduction in IFPL levels will most likely be short-lived, because indices are expected to rise again after the upcoming weekend. Please note the blue line in the ERC chart.
Fire management officials will increase the IFPL levels appropriately as wildfire risk increases. For the time being, the highest Public Use Restrictions (Phase C) will remain in effect given that Extreme Fire Danger persists in many areas and ERC levels are expected to rise.
“The IFPL system is designed to be reactive to current fire danger indices and, with the reduction in fire danger for the week, we wanted to give the permit holders and contractors an opportunity to gather some firewood or continue to work on fuels reduction and timber contracts,” said Nathan Goodrich, Wallowa-Whitman Deputy Fire Staff Officer. “Although we received some much-needed moisture last weekend, we ask everyone to stay vigilant about ignition sources while following their permit regulations and the Public Use Restrictions. The reduced fire danger will be short-lived, and we still have a long season ahead of us.”
