Reflection by CL

I learned of the 2013 Fire Ecology class for educators through my husband who is a volunteer fireman and educator.  He was attending a fire mitigation class when he heard Shawna Crocker mention this class.  At first I was apprehensive about taking the class because I have never been too interested in this topic, and wasn’t too sure that it would apply to Social Studies.  I still decided to sign up and see what it was all about.  I am glad I did!

Immediately I learned that fire has always been a part of our history.  I also learned how it affects societies as a whole.  So my assumption that it wouldn’t apply to History/Social studies was wrong.  I realized that Fire Ecology relates all core subjects together, and blurs the lines between subjects.

The class never had a dull moment.  The entire week was packed with presenters and activities.  I honestly felt that the class could have been a couple of days longer than scheduled.  There is too much to learn and there is not enough time to learn it all. I am not a person who likes to just sit, so this was a great class for me to take.  While we did have to sit a lot, we were also able to leave the classroom and take field trips.  My favorite day was the first field trip.  We went to the Upper South Platte Water Shed office.  Theresa Springer spoke to us about the impact fires have on the watersheds.  This had never crossed my mind before.  I never took the time to think beyond the fire and it getting put out.  She spoke to us about the effect the Hayman Fire had on the watershed.  She then told us more about the recent Waldo fire and the effect it will have on the watershed and the surrounding communities. We left from there and headed to visit some homes in Cascade.  The homes were surrounded by a long tall wall of sand bags.  These were placed there to help buy the residents some  time to hopefully make it out safely.  We were also told how the town of Manitou Springs could be destroyed by flash floods. Since the class, I have seen flash flood warning for that area at least twice.  During one of the warnings, they received enough rain to cause major havoc and it closed down highway 24.  I watched a video of a Gazette videographer getting washed away in the mud river which covered highway 24.  After this presentation, I questioned whether it is better for a person’s home to burn or be saved.  It seems that if a home is saved, it is now involved in a whole new set of problems; i.e. mud slides and flooding.  These new problems can last for years.  I never knew of the problems present after a fire.

From Cascade, we drove to Blodgett.  Blodgett is an area that was involved in the Waldo Canyon fire.  We met a geologist who took us for a hike into the burn area.  There we learned about hydrophobic soil and how it occurs.  We tested soil to see whether it was hydrophobic.  As suspected, in places the soil was hydrophobic. Since the soil doesn’t accept water easily, it is no wonder that burn areas experience flash flooding.  Prior to this class, I thought that if there was flooding it was due to the lack of vegetation.

I also enjoyed the presenters.  Each one had something new to teach us.  My favorite one was Amy from Colorado Springs Fire Department.  She is in charge of the Mitigation program.  I was impressed with her slide show and knowledge.  She doesn’t force people to strict mitigation, but offers suggestions. The pictures of the homes that had mitigated prior to the Waldo Canyon fire definitely made an impression on me.  Mitigation is one of the keys to reducing the risk of losing a home in a fire.

I am glad I attended this class.  I learned a lot more than I will ever be able to teach.  I am hoping to raise my students awareness of the importance of fire and living with fire. I recommend all educators to take this class.  You won’t be sorry!

Reflection by DP

My journey to the Fire Institute this summer started with my passion for teaching up-to-date and relevant science to my 6^th graders.  Last summer, our city was surprised and devastated by the Waldo Canyon Fire.  My students had a connection to the natural world that was emotional and immediate.  I incorporated their understanding of what happened during the summer as we discussed how to gather data, analyze data, and share our findings from our research.  The students shared their feelings through word portraits and eventually by writing letters to pen pals in another state.  At the end of our mini-unit on the Waldo Canyon Fire, the students asked for more.  I asked myself how I could give them more and give myself more understanding of the wildfires that have been annually affecting our Colorado skies. 

In the past, I have studied the Haymen Fire from 2002 with mini workshops put on by Project Learning Tree.  I have seen how our environment recovers from wildfires, and learned many things to share with my students.  But the Fire Institute at the Nature Place was a totally different experience.  This adventure gave me the opportunity to meet and hear from people who are regularly fighting fires, mitigating fire-prone areas, and preventing flooding from killing those already saved from the fires.  I had no idea all the different organizations that have to work together to save and protect we humans who have changed the natural landscape of our beautiful state.  We spent many years putting out the fires, and now we are learning what that did to the natural course of events in Colorado’s forests. 

Two weeks prior to the Fire Institute, another fire hit the city of Colorado Springs.  But this time, instead of being across town from the flames, my students and I were face to face with them.  My school district was evacuated.  Friends, family, and loved ones kept in constant contact as we watched and waited to see whether our own properties would survive.  My former students asked me questions via emails and I strove to answer them as well as I could.  But as the days progressed, I realized how little all of us really know about what is going on in our wildland areas.  Black Forest lost a lot.  The community is holding itself together and working towards a better future.  Everyone is learning as we live.  While I was fortunate enough to escape the flames of the fire itself, it spoke to me in a more visceral way.  I needed to know what was going on.  I had to understand why these fires were so destructive and hard to control.  And I wanted to be able to explain these things to my students, my friends, my family, and most importantly, to myself. 

The Fire Institute did more than meet my expectations.  It did more than answer my questions.  It provided me with resources to help build a more knowledgeable community of learners in my students.  It introduced me to new areas of Fire Ecology.  I traveled through and studied many fires from the past 20 years in the Southern Colorado region.  I learned why flash floods become a problem after fires, and learned new ways to teach this to my students.  I was shown the actual mitigation efforts put in place daily by CUSP, the State and National Forest Services, and the many Fire Departments that must work together.  We looked at a 3D aerial view of the canyons that lead into the Colorado Springs area and discussed what the worst flooding could do after hitting the Waldo Canyon burn scar areas.

Less than 2 days after finishing the Fire Institute, a brief rain storm turned into flooding and mudslides throughout the Manitou Springs and western Colorado Springs areas.  Highway 24 was closed right where our presenters had discussed the possible floods.  The canyons directed the flow of the water and debris just as predicted.  And as I watched the events unfold on the news, I realized that I understood exactly what was happening.  Not only that, I knew why it was happening.  I could see how the mitigation efforts helped in some places, and how nature really can roll right over us.  The goal of flood mitigation is to save lives.  Well, no one died that day.  Less than two weeks later another storm hit.   Highway 24 was closed again, flooding occurred in some similar areas.  Still, there were no deaths.  While everyone remarked how devastating these floods have been, I thanked God that we have the ability to get people out safe.  We have the ability to forecast floods in these areas.  We have the ability to work together and give people enough time to get out safe.  This “AHA” moment for me was more powerful than I can express on a piece of paper.  I hope to express my gratitude for the knowledge I gained at the Fire Institute by sharing my newfound knowledge with countless students to come. 

Thank you to everyone involved in helping me truly understand more of what is happening around me.  I definitely don’t understand it all.  I have many resources to help me continue my education and understanding.  Better than that, I know who to call when I just need an answer to a student’s difficult question.  I know that that this is one of the best educational experiences I have received in my life, I know I want to attend next year, and I know I will be bringing as many people with me as I can!  

Reflection by DW

In short, the Fire Ecology Institute was eye-opening.  I had heard about various wildfires and damage from wildfires over the years, but really had little first-hand knowledge about wildfire issues.  As I listened to the various speakers—speakers from diverse backgrounds and filling diverse rolls in the community—I was struck by how unified the story they told was.  Based upon the sampling represented by these speakers, there was clear consensus in the fire community about the impacts of fire suppression over the last century and what needs to be done to return our forests to a more natural, sustainable state.

With such a clear consensus in the fire community, I am surprised how little this message has made it into the mainstream media, our legislatures, and everyday conversation.  The message is ready for the public, but the public has had little exposure to it yet—at least from my perspective.  This impression has strengthened my desire to take the message into my classroom and make sure my students have at least a basic understanding about the unhealthy state of our forests.  One of the themes we discuss all year in my earth science classes is the idea that human activity has unintended consequences; because the natural world is composed of interconnected systems, society’s attempts to “control” nature—however well-intentioned—can backfire in unexpected ways.  The unhealthy state of the forests today is a perfect example of this, and it is one I think students need to hear about.

As for the Institute itself:  I was very pleased with the breadth and depth of material that was presented, and was especially pleased with the variety and quality of the speakers we heard over the course of the week.  Getting to hear from highly qualified people with diverse roles—fire fighting on the ground, forest and wildlife management, public education, research, etc.—was invaluable.  The field trips were excellent—they made the classroom concepts tangible and added necessary “ground truth” to what was being discussed.  I also was impressed with the abundance of resources I can take back to my classroom.  My only difficulty will be figuring out which of the many good activities and resources I’ll be able to fit in the very limited amount of class time we have each semester.

Being an earth science teacher, I plan to focus on the effects of wildfire on water and erosion issues, and the impact these things have on downstream communities.  My lesson plan reflects this focus.

Thank you for all your hard work planning and presenting the Fire Ecology Institute.  I am very pleased to have been part of it.

Reflection by NS

I had a three-fold purpose as I entered the week of study; 1) increase my content knowledge of forest attributes, wild land fires, fire mitigation, and the other topics to be presented; 2) gain a better understanding of wildfire prevention, affects and firefighting strategies as my husband is a firefighter and has been involved with the Waldo Canyon and Black Forest fires; 3) return from the institute with lessons and information to share with my students to increase their understanding, respect for and future relationship with the forest.

Reading the story about the events surrounding the fire on Storm King Mountain set a tone of the serious need for teamwork and respect of knowledge in an area of expertise where wild land fires are concerned. Having the Black Forest Fire devastate my community was surreal and ominous all at the same time, particularly as it took place days before this week of study.

Goal 1 was met as all the guest speakers, films, activities, tours and handouts served to increase my knowledge. I learned about the human ignorance of forest behavior and the importance fire plays in a healthy forest ecosystem over the decades, as well as the difficult task ahead to educate the public of the important need for mitigation, forest behavior education and the human component that effects forests, fires, mitigation and societal acceptance and responsibility towards all of the previously mentioned topics.

Goals 2 & 3 were met, as my foundational fire ecology knowledge was very limited prior to this class. Program Coordinator, Amy Sylvester of CSFD, shared a very convincing presentation in connection to the work that has been done (and is on-going) with the Colorado Springs community in regards to wild land fire prevention and home mitigation. Theresa Springer of the CUSP (Coalition for the Upper South Platte) spoke passionately of the work being done and the extreme need to educate the public of the aftermath of a fire. The extensive tours in the Waldo Canyon, Hayman and Blodgett Peak area were quite revealing. Hands-on activities with soil in a burn area with Eric Billmeyer from UCCS were surprising and peaked my interest in hydrophobic soil attributes. Soft-spoken, and heartfelt was the forest walk with The Nature Place Director, Rob Jolly. His dedication to community and education came through as he shared in earnest the work completed and the work in progress to keep the guests, campers and properties of The Nature Place safe and available for years to come. A believer in the power of inquiry-based learning, I appreciated his approach as he led us on a tour of the forests and the mitigation efforts in place and the impact of those efforts. The presentation by Dr. Peter Brown, Director of the Rocky Mountain Tree-Ring Research, made an equally strong impact on my thinking of this entire weeks study. The strategies (coring, tree ring analysis, graphic analysis of tree-ring dating, droughts, fires, and strong growth years) used to explore forest history longitudinally, as well as historically, (‘The cross dating analysis supports replication of chronologies, time, severity, and changes of elevation: Fire is inevitable it is not a question of IF, but when’)

illustrated occurrences over time that man has most likely contributed to unknowingly and continues to try to control that which Mother Nature will dictate in the end. While I may not be able to transfer the extent of information I was exposed to during the week of the institute, it is my goal to integrate as much as I can into the content storylines in my classroom be it science, engineering, social studies or math. I look forward to inviting Amy Sylvester to my school community to speak and raise awareness, as well as my husband to share his experiences. I am not sure at this time as to the level of involvement my students can engage with CUSP, but I will endeavor to raise their awareness and hopefully their involvement in the prevention of forest fires, appreciation for forest ecosystems and global forest status.

Reflection by RB

My initial exposure to fire ecology was at an instructional session for Catamount Institute YES teachers. We were given a very quick overview of the basics, enough to be able to guide our kids through a semester of fire ecology Investigations. That training was a few hours long and in that time frame we were given very thorough procedures for carrying out the weekly classes. We learned how to guide investigations about the fire triangle, fuel types, matchstick forests, defensible space and the effects of wildfire on the animals. I spent the semester learning along side my students about this very important subject.

After spending a week reviewing many of these same materials in depth along with the discussions and expert trainers, I feel so much more able to give my YES students a quality program. I will be more confident to answer their questions and to direct them to the most productive resources to enhance their experiences. Additionally, I feel confident to design a PLT teacher training focused on fire ecology issues.

One area that I had no background information about was the hydrophobic soil piece. I am very excited to have this knowledge to include in the next semester with the students and plan to include investigations about this concept in our semester work. Additionally, I plan to include some stream table work with them to help them appreciate the work done by CUSP to mitigate flooding in the aftermath of fires. While it may not be possible to take them to the areas where we saw the work being done on the slopes and in the drainage areas, having seen these myself, I feel confident that I will be able to guide the students in understanding the methods being used by those mitigating these areas.

I would love to help develop some stream table activities to be used at future FEI trainings. I plan to use some at PLT fire ecology trainings that I will facilitate in the coming year.

The mapping activities we were taught re-exposed me to ESRI software and demonstrated how much more user friendly it has become. If I have access to computers for my students, I can envision using GIS mapping as they develop their class project for the semester.

The week spent at the 2013 FEI was most productive. I appreciate the time and effort it took to put this training together.

Reflection by CR

In regards to fire in forested areas – the overall theme is “ … not a matter of if but rather when”.  That particular theme was played over and over again and as the week progressed – this sentiment applied not only to fire but flooding in fire-scarred areas, as well.

Sunday

We rolled in to the Nature Place and were able to get settled in to our rooms and met with Shawna Crocker, PLT Coordinator and Steve Jennings – Geography Prof. at UCCS.  Steve Jennings lead us in a GPS Activity, punching in latitude and longitude coordinates in our GPS and then going out and locating those points – we ran in to a slight problem, as one of the coordinates took us in to the youth camp – but not a big deal.  Meals at the Nature Place were outstanding.  We ended the evening with introductions to staff at the Nature Place and CSFS.  Materials and schedule for the week was passed out and discussed.

Monday

Met with guest speaker, Amy Sylvester from the Colorado Springs Fire Department.  Amy presented work being done to rate the fire risk of neighborhoods in the Colorado Springs area.  It appears that it will be a valuable tool with more people building in wooded areas – this will assess the risk and educate neighborhoods on things they can do to minimize the risk.

Dr. Peter Brown introduced us to dendrochronology and forest ecology – looking at tree rings and developing a forest timeline.  I was fairly familiar with dendrochronology but enjoyed the new experience of coring a tree and then mounting that core sample.  Demonstrated the adaptations and resilience of forest trees when it comes to drought and fire.

After dinner we watched the movie, Fire Wars – a brilliant film demonstrating the evolution of fire ecology and fire thinking here in the United States.  For a number of years our thinking was we would spot a fire and put it out immediately.  We are now paying the consequences for years of fire suppression and prevention, with little or no management, with extremely devastating fires.  We are now experiencing fires that are burning so hot that they are destroying forests and everything associated with a forest for several years to follow.

Tuesday – Field Day

Traveled to Lake George area – met with Theresa Springer with the Coalition for the Upper South Platte (CUSP).  Theresa shared one major consequences of a fire scar – flooding.  Looked at the Waldo Canyon burn area - Theresa took us up a canyon above Hwy 24 and Manitou Springs and showed the sand bagging and work that they have done to save homes in that canyon and spread out the energy of the water coming down the burn scar.  They have scenarios for varying levels of rain – there will be flooding – depending on the amount of rain and the intensity of that rain will determine the level of destruction.

Met with Eric Billmeyer – instructor in the Department of Geography at UCCS.  Eric led us on a hike into the Blodgett Open Space burn area.  We were looking specifically at the effects of fire on soil.  NEW Learning - Soil, after a wild fire, becomes somewhat water resistant also called Hydrophobic – one thought is that the organic matter in the soil burns leaving a hydrocarbon layer that fills in the pore spaces and repels water, leading to massive runoff in burn areas.  We did some soil tests on the soil in this burn area – tested hydrophobicity of the soil, soil consistency and texture.

-Traveled to Glen Eyrie – looked at the flood mitigation above the castle – two massive catch nets designed to trap debris carried by water flooding out of the canyon.  These catch nets are massive in structure but still are not enough for what they are expecting from the floods in the Colorado Springs area.  Staff at Glen Eyrie was also quick to point out the reinforcement to the lower foundation of the castle – there is an interlocking brick lining along the castle – staff expect the grass and soil to be torn up but hope to hold the foundation of the castle in tact – as one staffer said – “we can do grass” – just thought that was a funny statement – implying that they can easily replace the torn up grass – not quite as easy to replace a castle’s foundation.

Rich Homann with the CSFS met with us that evening – introduced us to COWRAP – a risk management system put out by CSFS – a huge resource for people across the state - coloradowildfirerisk.com/ - New Learning - Rich also mentioned the ICS – Instant Command System – I am still wrapping my brains around this but certainly makes sense that there is a system in place to bring in needed help as fires intensify and threaten life – jurisdiction chief remains in charge but force is brought in to help manage.  It is a national system that enforces the chain of command and command will consist of Federal, State, and Local.  I still need some clarification of this but it sounds like a system that works quite well.

Wednesday

Tree Ring Paper Plate activity – could be used in class setting to introduce tree rings, adaptations and survival.

Rob Jolly – director of the Nature Place – led us on a nature hike and discussion.  Lead to a barrel cactus patch – discussed the fragility of nature but it’s resilience, as well.  Rob mentioned that change happens from the fringes – Barrel cactus in the inner cluster are comfortable and in status quo but mutation and change most likely will happen or occur within the out-lying cactus – challenged us to think about where new thinking and change happens - often happens outside the accepted norm.  Shared an activity – took butcher paper and shook junipers and collected bugs – demonstrating that microenvironments occur all around us.  Pointed out Lichen and talked about Symbiotic relationships – where do we see these w/i us as humans?

Started looking at the FireWorks and FireBoxes that are available – worked on a match-stick activity – excellent demonstration for fire mitigation.

After dinner we watched the movie – The Green Fire – a biographical sketch of Aldo Leopold – an environmental force and author.  I need to read more about this pioneer and environmentalist.

Thursday – Field Day

Drove to Lake George and met with Mike Hessler – District Fire Management Officer – seems to have a different jurisdiction, more on a regional level.  Took us to a prescribed Burn area in the Pike National Forest not far from Eleven Mile Reservoir.  Initial reactions were – opened up area, cleaned up ladder fuels, particularly lower hanging branches, burned off built up debris under trees.  In preparation for the prescribed burn, workers cleared dead needles away from tree base.   Fire happens in forested area, removing extra fuels can prevent a fire from burning so hot that it destroys the forest is one theory of forest management.  A tree infected with “mistletoe” – a parasitic plant that infects trees – tree branches and clusters around the parasite and eventually the tree will die.  We traveled into the Springer Fire area and worked on a wildfire scavenger hunt – fascinating challenge when one slows down and looks for forest damage, adaptations, and recovery.

Met with Fire Chief and Captain “Cricket”

I am still fascinated with ICS and still question who is in charge but it appears that Jurisdiction Chief is in command – I asked about neighboring fire crews helping on fire lines – who direction do they follow?  The chief assured me it is his and made the statement– “it is good to be the King”.

Fire Line – talked about the use of proper equipment – starting with natural fiber clothing.  Looked at Pulaski axe, McLoed tool, fire rakes and shovels.  I got to run a type of fire rake with large agriculture teeth.  This experience allowed me a small peak at what it is like to scrape the earth … the exhaustion of monotonous work – the hope that it will slow down the destruction, constantly looking over your shoulder waiting for the wind to shift and redirect the all-consuming force, full-well knowing you could lose your life trying to save someone’s house or tool shed or life.

Ate lunch at Hayman burn area – massive destruction – 11 years later and the recovery is very slow – the aspens – a pioneer species in the forest – are few are far between and only around 5-6 feet tall.  We met with Tonya Sharp – with the Colorado Parks and Wildlife.  She talked about the effects that wildfire has on wildlife. 

Friday

Started looking at ways to use all the information.  Began collaboration with another science teacher in my district – we are planning to build a series of lesson around adaptions and how some local species are better suited to survive “typical” forest fires. 

We received several resources and activity guides to begin putting together a rigorous unit on Adaptations and Survival.

Put together a presentation on how we are planning to use this information and presented it to the whole group.

Reflection by JM

The week long Fire Ecology Institute taught me an immense amount about not only wildfire, but wildfire in Colorado.  I gleaned concepts about WUI, fire preparedness, my homes fire danger, mitigation, recovery, succession in action, and much more.  I especially liked learning about these concepts out in the field with the professionals.  Being able to venture out into Waldo Canyon, Haymen, Stringer, and the other fires of the Colorado Springs/Manitu Springs area with our hard hats on and ready allowed me to see the concepts in action while learning what I can apply with my students learning.  I especially liked being able to conduct the water permeability lab in the field...what a great way to see the difference between the two types of soil and to then relate that to the flooding issues the many areas are experiences with rain storms.

Another thing I took away from the Institute was the many lesson plan ideas.  Especially the one my partner, Lynne Moser and I created.  I am excited to take it back to my school and my department to teach it a) to other staff members, but b) to my students. 

I am hoping to take my real life experiences from this institute to gain the interest of my staff and students, then turn around and hope to take them out into the field as well.  Great learning!

The only suggestion I can reflect upon for this institute is the overall organization of it.  Although I know there were many aspects of coordinating the field trips, speakers, and so on...it would have been wiser to do the lectures then field trips (it is hard to focus in the afternoon on a lecture after a 6-7 hour hiking morning).  I would have also grouped liked topics together on the days of their connected field trips...this would have broken the lectures up.

Thank you for a great trip!