The National Interagency Fire Center and the National Wildfire Coordinating Group

The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) is a resource to be interpreted as a subtheme when we explain the role of the government in wildland fire management. Without a clear rudimentary understanding of national fire management and coordination, society may feel unduly at risk. NIFC and the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) provide for our nation's comprehensive wildland fire management.

NIFC, located in Boise, Idaho, is the nation's management and logistical support center for wildland fire. NIFC coordinates and supports operations for managing wildland fire and other natural disasters throughout the United States.

The fire center is also active in fuel load management and public education/outreach. The fire center is located on a 55-acre site administered by the Bureau of Land Management. Operating costs and responsibilities are shared by the cooperating agencies.

Wildland fire does not respect jurisdictional boundaries. No single federal, state, local, tribal, or volunteer agency alone can handle all wildland fire that may occur in its jurisdiction. These groups work together to exchange support, protection responsibilities, information, and training, to protect lives, property, and natural resources.

NIFC provides valuable coordination and support for these cooperative firefighting efforts.

It also provides assistance and support for other natural disasters at the request of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). In addition, the fire center provides support to Canada through a mutual aid agreement and to other foreign countries through the U.S. Department of State, Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance.

NIFC provides:

NIFC also facilitates the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) that is tasked to quickly locate and mobilize emergency personnel, equipment, supplies, and aircraft nationwide.

The Multi-Agency Coordination (MAC) group is another program facilitated by NIFC. When the national fire situation becomes severe, the MAC group is activated to identify national or interagency issues, and to set priorities for allocation of resources. This coordination group consists of the NIFC directors and, when appropriate, a representative from the General Services Administration (GSA), a military liaison, and/or state foresters.

Responsibilities for mobilizing to address fire are at these levels–local, geographic area, and national. At the local level, wildland fire is initially managed by the local agency that has fire protection responsibility for that area. Engines, ground crews, smokejumpers, helicopter firefighters (landing or repelling), helicopters with water buckets, and airtankers carrying retardant may all be used for initial suppression. Various local agencies may work together, sharing personnel and equipment, to fight new fire(s) and those that escape initial action.

If a wildland fire grows to the point where local personnel and equipment are not enough to fight it, the responsible agency contacts the nearest Geographic Area Coordination Center (GACC) for help. The GACC will locate and dispatch additional firefighters and support personnel, including incident management teams, engines, bulldozers, other aircraft, and supplies throughout the geographic area. The GACC can also contract for private goods and services if government support is not available.

During busy fire seasons, fighting wildland fires may exhaust the supply of state, local, and geographic area personnel and equipment. In these cases the GACC contacts the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) at NIFC and relays requests from the fire. NIFC locates and mobilizes the closest available resources, wherever they are, throughout the nation.

NIFC partners are: 1) Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Department of the Interior–BLM manages 264 million acres of public lands, provides fire protection for 388 million acres, and is the host agency at NIFC. BLM's National Office of Fire and Aviation is headquartered at NIFC. 2) U.S. Forest Service (USFS), U.S. Department of Agriculture–USFS manages 191 million acres of national forests and grasslands. State wildland fire organizations are represented at NIFC through the U.S. Forest Service's Cooperative State and Private Forest authorities. 3) Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), U.S. Department of the Interior–FWS manages more than 92 million acres of national wildlife refuge and wetland areas. The FWS National Division of Refuges, Fire Management Branch, is headquartered at NIFC. 4) National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Department of the Interior–NPS administers 80 million acres of national parks, monuments, historic sites, natural areas, and other federal lands. Its national Branch of Fire and Aviation is located at NIFC. 5) Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), U.S. Department of Interior–BIA provides wildland fire protection for 60 million acres of Indian reservations and other trust lands. BIA's National Wildland Fire and Aviation staff is headquartered at NIFC. 6) National Weather Service (NWS), U.S. Department of Commerce–NWS provides vital weather analysis, forecasts, and training to all fire management agencies. During fire seasons, NWS provides daily weather briefings to NIFC. 7) Office of Aircraft Services (OAS), U.S. Department of the Interior–OAS provides aircraft, and technical and administrative aviation services to governmental organizations. OAS, part of the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, is located at NIFC. Joining with the aforementioned group is the National Association of State Foresters. It is through this group that individual states participate. Representatives from each of the groups comprise the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG).

The purpose of the NWCG is to establish an operational group designed to coordinate programs of the participating management agencies so as to avoid wasteful duplication of resources and to provide a means of constructively working together. Its goal is to provide more effective execution of each agency's fire management program. The group provides a formalized system to agree upon standards of training, equipment, qualifications, aircraft, suppression priorities, and other operational functions. Agreed upon policies, standards, and procedures are implemented directly through regular agency channels.

Communicators are urged not to overlook the institutional framework. The institutional arrangements, and subsequent policies and practices, provide a story within itself that society has paid for and should hear.

References

NIFC; 3833 Development Ave.; Boise, ID 83705. (208) 387-5512; www.nifc.gov