Flagstaff, San Bernardino officials point to local fuels projects and collaboration as models
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Summary
Local fire officials from Flagstaff and San Bernardino described multi-decade collaborations, watershed protection investments and targeted treatments that officials say have reduced risk when projects are sustained and maintained.
Officials from Flagstaff and San Bernardino told a House Natural Resources hearing that locally driven, long-term collaborations and investment in fuels treatments have demonstrably reduced fire behavior near communities and provided models for other regions.
Neil Chapman, a wildland fire captain with the Flagstaff Fire Department, described the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project, a locally driven program funded by a 2012 voter-approved $10 million bond that leveraged more than $40 million in partner contributions. Chapman said that combination of thinning, prescribed fire and a growing local timber industry has enabled Flagstaff to treat lands across jurisdictional boundaries and improve both forest and watershed health.
Chapman said the program's clean-air initiatives include distribution of HEPA-rated air purifiers and a network of indoor and outdoor air-quality monitors to support residents during prescribed burns and smoke events. "No one should be subjected to low-quality indoor air due to beneficial fire management practices," Chapman said. He also noted that the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) completed a multi-million-acre NEPA process without litigation and serves as an example of a collaborative approach that aligns forest restoration and timber markets.
Dan Muncy, chief of the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District, described a long-running, multi-year removal of beetle-killed trees and millions of pounds of biomass that local leaders say reduced hazard after a sustained push. Muncy emphasized access and control lines: he showed photos that contrasted Civilian Conservation Corps-era control lines and access with current dense cover that makes suppression and early containment more difficult. He argued for clearer leadership and a single interagency path for land-management decisions so that local governments are not left to bridge regulatory fragmentation.
Both witnesses said maintenance funding is critical: fuels treatments can be effective only if there is a plan and money to maintain them over time, and they urged federal grants and programs to prioritize long-term outcomes, not only initial treatments.
The testimony included specific local figures cited by witnesses: Flagstaff's bond and matched partner funding totals, ForeFry/4FRI acreage references and past tree-removal counts in San Bernardino. Committee members asked for documentation and invited witnesses to share implementation lessons for replication.
