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State and federal firefighting officials are racing to figure out how to fight wildfires during the coronavirus pandemic. Fire camps are “the land version of a cruise ship,” according to Ron Dunton, the former head of the National Interagency Fire Center. Dunton told Bloomberg's Bobby Magill that camps set up for a large fire often house 1,000 people or more, acting as a Petri dish for disease.
A multi-agency group is in the process of adapting firefighting plans for COVID-19, but a memo last week admits “we are entering into uncharted territory.” Firefighters will likely be housed in isolated camps and deploy in smaller groups. But officials don’t know how they’ll transport firefighters together without risking infection, or how to deal with states that have mandatory 14-day quarantines for people entering from out of state.
Public lands and economic recovery
When America's economy emerges from coronavirus, public lands may play a significant role in getting Americans back to work. CWP's Hannah Rider looks at the employment implications of the Great American Outdoors Act, which was introduced in the Senate with bipartisan support—and a presidential endorsement—just before the pandemic shut down the country. An analysis last year found that completing all of the projects on the National Park Service’s maintenance backlog would create more than 100,000 jobs.
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For a long time things can seem OK and then suddenly they’re not. Then, it’s too late to do anything about it because you’ve already fallen over this cliff edge.”
