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Flagstaff fire captain tells House committee local wildfire work supports national policy priorities
Summary
Captain Neil Chapman of the Flagstaff Fire Department told a House Committee on Natural Resources panel that local investments in the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project and Four Forest Restoration Initiative demonstrate scalable approaches for wildfire risk reduction and air‑quality protection during prescribed fire.
A Flagstaff wildland fire captain who testified in Washington, D.C., described the city’s multi‑decade wildfire risk reduction work and urged continued federal support to enable prescribed fire and community protections tied to air quality.
Neil Chapman, a wildland fire captain with the Flagstaff Fire Department, detailed local programs and federal policy recommendations during remarks shown to the City Council on May 27. Chapman said Flagstaff’s work on forest health and community protection illustrates how local, tribal, state and federal partners can implement prescribed fire, fuels reduction and related public‑health measures.
Chapman noted local investments and partnerships: “In 2012, Flagstaff voters approved a $10,000,000 bond to support the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project,” he said, adding that those funds have leveraged “over $40,000,000 in partner contributions.” Chapman said the city has distributed more than 450 HEPA air purifiers and is developing clean‑air hub plans for community buildings to reduce smoke exposure during prescribed burns.
He cited national policy tools under consideration, including the “Fix Our Forest Act,” and described provisions that would help by creating a Fire Intelligence Center and by clarifying Clean Air Act pathways to streamline prescribed burn permitting using the exceptional events process. Chapman also discussed the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI), noting the large NEPA effort that covered about 2.4 million acres and that the Coconino National Forest has been among the most active forests for prescribed fire and timber production in recent years.
Chapman emphasized workforce and response realities: non‑federal wildland fire staff respond as first responders on roughly 80% of wildfires, he said, and the nation’s nearly 18,000 fire departments and districts have roles in wildfire response. He called for policies that support local capacity and cooperation across jurisdictions.
City managers described Chapman’s testimony as “a great representation” of Flagstaff’s work and thanked him for the presentation. Council members asked about codes and building standards; city staff said the city adopted the International Code Council’s Wildland‑Urban Interface Code in February 2008 with amendments and that staff plan to pursue updates toward the 2024 code with targeted amendments to reflect modern standards for wildfire‑resistant construction.
Chapman concluded by urging a culture shift toward proactive risk reduction and continued investment in the workforce and community protection strategies that integrate public health, forest restoration and prescribed fire.
