The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Gila District, which includes the Safford and Tucson field offices, received the National Excellence in Ecosystem Management Award from the BLM’s National Fire and Aviation Office on November 27. This is the first time this national award has been presented in Arizona.

 

Mark Pater, Fire Ecologist for the Gila District, who was instrumental in many of the projects cited in the award, accepted the award on behalf of the Gila District’s fire program. The District was specifically recognized for its efforts to restore natural ignition fire to the landscape for resource benefits as part of its Wildland Fire Use (WFU) program.

 

The success of this effort is the result of collaboration between the Safford Field Office, Gila District Office, Arizona State Office, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). As compared to other WFU plans, the Gila District’s planning effort consulted with the USFWS from the beginning of its planning process in order to avoid emergency consultation during a WFU event. Wildland Fire Use management areas in the Safford Field Office include BLM-managed lands in the Santa Teresa Mountains, Turtle Mountain, Peloncillo and Whitlock mountains, and Guadalupe Canyon. Planning efforts were initiated about three years ago.

 

These efforts included revising the Gila District Fire Management Plan, preparing an environmental assessment, and writing a biological evaluation for USFWS review, as well as public involvement during the process. Pater’s work will now serve as a template for Wildland Fire Use planning efforts throughout BLM Arizona, and will allow the Gila District to utilize WFU as a tool to maintain natural ecological processes.