The Elko District encompasses 12.5 million acres, and has fire suppression responsibility on 7.5 million acres. Assistance is also provided to numerous cooperating agencies such as the Nevada Division of Forestry, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and numerous county, tribal and municipal governments. Within its borders lie several ranger districts of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, including the Ruby Mountains Wilderness and the Jarbidge Wilderness, as well as the Ruby Marshes National Wildlife Refuge. The BLM also administers 10 Wilderness Study Areas for a total of over 272,000 acres.
The Elko Field Office’s fire suppression organization currently employs over 70 employees, and consists of four stations (Elko, Carlin, Wells, and Midas), ten 4x4 heavy engines, three Fire Operations Supervisors, an Interagency Hotshot crew, an Air Attack plane, and a type 3 helicopter with Helitack crew. In addition to these suppression resources, the Elko Interagency Dispatch Center handles all-risk dispatch duties for five agencies, and an aggressive fuels management program implements both hazard fuels reduction and projects for resource benefit each year. The fire organization also completes numerous prevention and public outreach activities annually.
The organization is also responsible for all fire management activities for the Eastern Nevada Agency of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The ENA program supports several type 2 handcrews and camp support crews, and includes completion of vegetation management projects on Tribal and BIA lands in the area.
The Elko district is considered one of the highest fire load Field Offices within the BLM. The District averages over 150 fires per season for approximately 100,000 acres, with an average season of June 1- September 15. However, the district has experienced several extreme seasons in the last few years. From 1999-2001 we had 300 fires per year and burned a total of 1,000,000 acres. During the 2006 season, we had over 250 fires and burned 945,000 acres.
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