Rural Fire Readiness
Cooperative partnerships between the BLM and local, volunteer, and rural fire departments are crucial to success in responding to remote wildfires on private, state and federal lands affecting grazing, recreational, wildlife and other values important to local rural economies. The BLM’s Rural Fire Readiness (RFR) program is dedicated to enhancing the firefighting capabilities of our wildland firefighting partners. The RFR appropriations provide states, districts, and field offices the resources available to support local cooperators in priority response areas where lives, property, and resources are at high risk from wildfire. The program allows the BLM Montana/Dakotas to provide training and equipment to our partners – at no cost to them - so we can continue to safely and efficiently suppress wildland fires together.
Through RFR appropriations, BLM Montana/Dakotas provides roughly 40 NWCG training courses and exercises to about 1000 students from cooperating fire organizations throughout Montana annually.
The RFR program also assists local wildland firefighting partners that meet certain requirements with wildland firefighting equipment including wildland fire engines, water tenders, radios, pumps, hose, chainsaws, hand tools, personal protective equipment, fire shelters and other items the BLM no longer needs. To be eligible to receive wildland firefighting vehicles, equipment and supplies through the RFR program, local fire departments and Rangeland Fire Protection Associations must meet a number of requirements:
- They must have an existing cooperative fire response agreement with the BLM.
- They must serve a rural community or area.
- They must have wildland fire protection responsibilities.
- They must be in close proximity to BLM-administered lands and respond to wildland fires in support of BLM when available and as needed.