r/Wildfire • u/smokejumperbro USFS • Feb 06 '25

News (General) Sens. Padilla, Sheehy propose new wildfire agency

https://www.semafor.com/article/02/06/2025/sens-padilla-sheehy-propose-new-wildfire-agency

Here we go folks

87 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

90 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

7

u/[deleted] Feb 06 '25

What do you think this means for duty locations? Just hypothetical right now obviously but do you think this would move USDA people out of their current locations.

8

u/[deleted] Feb 06 '25

I imagine it would be a years long process. Probably long enough to be moth balled by the next administration. But, if it happened, the responsible thing to do would to initially consolidate to jump/tanker/rappel bases. The agencies won’t be keen on just handing over real estate but places like Gifford Pinchot and the Oregon coast would just shed the fire staff and refocus on resources. Then an investigation to ensure these super bases are where they are still needed most. A handcrew leaving any particular jump base in the northwest can still rival a current response time.

5

u/[deleted] Feb 06 '25

Interesting thought I really like it. And as far as other parts of the country go maybe utilizing different bases in region would work as well. Perfectly good base in northern Utah. It would also be sweet to start certifying other resources in operations particularly hotshot crews. Adding repel capability to a 25 person crew would be an excellent idea.

4

u/[deleted] Feb 06 '25

I mean, your heads in the right place…if you hire more rappellers and use more Type 1s it would have the same result. It’s all theoretical, but like working for the FS now, everyone has access to leadership classes and cert taskbooks. It would be a very similar vibe and logistics as it is now (handcrews piecing out folks for engine assignments, jumpers taking crewboss for reg roles, etc).