Five Education and Mitigation Specialists within BLM Colorado assist in partnerships, education, mitigation, and outreach. The BLM’s Mitigation and Education Specialists responsibilities are to:
• Organize and facilitate public meetings in cooperation with other organizations.
• Work with schools to incorporate fire education into science and other classes.
• Prepare educational materials and web sites for public use.
• Coordinate fire education efforts with other organizations and agencies.
• Prepare and conduct public meetings on proposed fuels reduction projects in and around communities.
• Manage fire prevention programs.
• Provide fire information on prescribed burns.
BLM Colorado trains American Red Cross (ARC) and rural fire department volunteers to work with communities and rural landowners in wildfire disaster preparedness and hazard mitigation methods. The U.S. Forest Service (USFS), Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS), and BLM provide financial, logistical, and technical support to the ARC.
BLM Colorado provides financial and technical assistance to the CSFS coordinator who develops training materials, training programs and collaborative projects between the ARC and other agencies. The coordinator also oversees a pilot project in which the ARC provides the “arms and legs” to local fire departments, sheriffs, and the CSFS to deliver wildfire preparedness and hazard mitigation education to communities-at-risk. The pilot project resulted in a National Memorandum of Understanding among the ARC, the Department of Interior, the USFS, the National Association of State Foresters, and the National Fire Protection Association to collaborate in community-based preparedness and mitigation education.