Today's episode is all about post-fire—how to plan and prepare for post-fire challenges like debris flows and landslides, how to recover, how to maintain a love of place after it's impacted by fire, and how we can reduce suffering in this often dynamic phase of wildfire response and recovery. Our guest on this topic is Collin Haffey, the Post Fire Recovery Program Manager for the Washington DNR, who prior to working with the DNR worked as the Forest and Watershed Health Coordinator for the New Mexico Forestry Division during the catastrophic 2022 Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire.
Today's episode is all about post-fire—how to plan and prepare for post-fire challenges like debris flows and landslides, how to recover at a community and landscape scale, how to maintain a love of place after it's impacted by fire, and how we can reduce suffering in this often dynamic phase of wildfire response and recovery.
Our guest on this topic is Collin Haffey, the Post Fire Recovery Program Manager for the Washington DNR, who prior to working with the DNR worked as the Forest and Watershed Health Coordinator for the New Mexico Forestry Division during the catastrophic 2022 Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire. This fire burned over 340,000 acres in largely rural areas that were also, subsequently, impacted by intense debris flows and mudslides, spurred by monsoonal rain events only weeks after the fire burned through the area. These debris flows were in many cases more devastating to residents in these areas than the fires themselves—they destroyed wells and water systems, devastated roads and other infrastructure and destroyed hundreds of homes, including century-old adobe homes that had housed multiple generations of native New Mexicans. If you're interested in learning more about the HP-CC Fire, I highly recommend the in-depth reporting of Patrick Lohmann at Source NM. I also wrote about the post-fire impacts of the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon, as well as potential policy solutions, for Land Lines Magazine back in 2023.
For some background: post-fire concerns range from erosion and flooding events that can have major impacts on infrastructure and watersheds (and systems), but also includes the process of reforestation, erosion reduction and reducing the incursion and spread of invasive species in delicate post-fire landscapes.
How communities prepare and plan for these challenges can make an immense difference in how quickly they recover, and Collin's work focuses heavily on encouraging communities to better prepare not just for wildfire, but for what comes after it.
One of Collin's biggest projects at present is the After the Fire Washington website, where you can find tried-and-true recovery practices, resources for landowners, community members and community leaders, case studies and other information.
Finally, if you'd like to read a bit more about Collin's experiences and insights gained from seeing the HP-CC Fire impacts first hand, check out this great blog post he wrote for the Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network: Stuck in the Mud: Gaps in Post-Fire Recovery Programs - Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network
Timestamps:
00:00 - Episode Start
00:38 - Amanda Monthei Intro
06:54 - Start of conversation—Collin's background
08:17 - Gaps In post-fire conversation, preparedness and planning
09:57 - Lessons From Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire
12:41 - Good examples of post-fire response
14:25 - Need someone to direct post-fire tasks
16:14 - Is the only way to learn about recovery through experience?
16:52 - Suppression vs. recovery teams—a need for both
18:39 - The importance of community recovery collaboratives
21:00 - Developing a CWPP
24:35 - Overthinking CWPP documents
26:35 - Common post-Fire challenges
29:02 - Managing mental & emotional trauma (both community and practitioner) during the post-fire period
33:12 - How community and resident relationships to the land change after wildfires
32:33 - Fostering a love of place after (and despite) wildfire
35:03 - Getting community involved in post-fire preparedness
36:43 - Disconnect between FEMA & local organizations
38:36 - What does a community that is well-prepared for post fire challenges look like?