CORVALLIS, Ore. — The first responders to wildfires in the remote rangelands of the Great Basin are increasingly not government agencies, but volunteer groups of private landowners trained and authorized in partnership with state and federal agencies.
Known as Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPAs), these groups originated in the 1960s in Eastern Oregon and have rapidly expanded over the last 20 years. Today, they are responsible for protecting 25.5 million acres of public and private lands across the Pacific Northwest.
“Every fire where these folks work together, the ranchers learn more about fire and how agencies operate — and the agencies learn more about what ranchers know about the land, especially the terrain. That’s largely positive.”
Before these groups were established, wildfire response in remote areas was often marked by conflict between ranchers and government officials.
A new study led by Oregon State University researchers found that tensions between ranchers and agencies have eased — rapidly in Idaho and gradually in Oregon.
“These relationships are improving, and with time they continue to improve,” said lead author Emily Jane Davis, assistant professor and Extension specialist in Oregon State’s College of Forestry. “Every fire where these folks work together, the ranchers learn more about fire and how agencies operate — and the agencies learn more about what ranchers know about the land, especially the terrain. That’s largely positive.”
The study was published in the journal Disasters and comes amid growing concern over increasingly destructive wildfires in the Great Basin. One such fire — the Long Draw fire in southeastern Oregon — burned more than 557,000 acres in 2012.
These megafires threaten rangelands used for cattle grazing, habitat for species like greater sage-grouse and deer, as well as regional recreation and cultural values tied to Western land use.
How RFPAs operate
RFPAs operate in rural, remote areas and are designed to respond to wildfires when they are still small — helping prevent large-scale fires that can spread quickly across sagebrush steppe ecosystems.
The model is unique in that it incorporates trained, non-professional and non-governmental participants into wildfire response. According to Davis, RFPAs arose from a desire among ranchers to protect livestock and forage while also advancing broader management objectives — such as protecting sage-grouse habitat and improving fire suppression effectiveness.
RFPAs are authorized by state law in Oregon, Idaho and Nevada. Washington state is considering similar legislation.
As of 2019, Oregon had 24 RFPAs covering 16.5 million acres, while Idaho — which launched its program in 2013 — had nine RFPAs managing nearly 9 million acres.
For the study, the research team — Davis, Jesse Abrams of the University of Georgia and Katherine Wollstein, then a Ph.D. student at the University of Idaho — analyzed the RFPA model through extensive fieldwork.
They compiled public documents, conducted 59 interviews with key leaders from RFPAs, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and state agencies, and developed four in-depth case studies — two in Oregon and two in Idaho. The team also attended state-level RFPA meetings in 2016 and 2017.
The federal government, primarily through the BLM, manages approximately 70% of rangelands in the Western United States. Through a leasehold tenure system, ranchers graze livestock on public lands and have a direct interest in how those lands are managed and protected.
Looking ahead
In January 2019, Davis presented highlights from a Northwest Fire Science Consortium report on RFPAs to Washington state legislators. Though RFPAs don’t yet operate in Washington, Davis said interest remains high, and findings from the study may help guide future efforts.
“Efforts to protect unprotected and remote rangelands are ongoing,” she said. “Models like RFPAs can help reduce conflict and increase collaboration in wildfire response.”
The study was funded by the Joint Fire Science Program.
Previously titled Tensions lessening between rangeland fire groups and government agencies
