Activities begin at 5 p.m. with exhibits and poster displays by the IWMT and other community organizations. Panel presentations begin at 6 p.m., followed by a question and answer period at 7:30 p.m. and a breakout session with the panelists from 8:15 to 9 p.m.
The panel will include representatives from the Nature Conservancy, Los Alamos County Fire Department, Los Alamos County Cooperative Extension Services, the Laboratory's Cerro Grande Rehabilitation Project, Bandelier National Monument and Los Alamos County Emergency Management.
"Although we've had a little spring precipitation, we are still in a drought condition," said Diana Webb of Los Alamos' Operations Directorate, co-founder and chair of the IWMT. "If the winds pick up in April, as they often do, we will see the forest dry out quickly. The fact is that, here on the Pajarito Plateau, the threat of wildfire will always be with us," said Webb.
Doug Tucker, deputy fire chief for Los Alamos County and an IWMT member, agrees. "Barring a very wet spring, the forecast is grim. We have a real fuel hazard in Los Alamos. The eastern slopes of the Jemez Mountains and Los Alamos County are looking at extreme conditions again this year," Tucker said. "We anticipate a season that's worse than in 2000.
"Without the onslaught of the bark beetle, we might have had a different scenario, but now we have to deal with dead fuels," he said. "We're better off if the fuels are on the ground than standing red. Spot fires will be our biggest problem.
"We're right there," Tucker said. "With all the dead fuel on the trees and on the ground, we're looking at a different type of fire than the Cerro Grande. We may not have the luxury of evacuating next time. We may have to shelter in place."
Former Los Alamos County Councilor Robert Gibson of the Laboratory's Plasma Physics Group will moderate the discussion and a public question and answer session.
The meeting will be broadcast live on Los Alamos radio station KRSN 1490 AM.
For more information on the "Wildfire 2003" meeting, contact Fran Talley of Los Alamos' Public Affairs Office at 667-5225 or write to flt@lanl.gov by electronic mail.
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Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.