Michigan Prescribed Fire Council Quarterly Meeting Minutes
Date: 10 December 2024
Location: Ed Lowe Foundation

Attendees:
Jarod Reibel (ELF), Stephanie Diep (KNC), Graceanna Cooper (MDNR), Dave Brown (SWMLC), Ben Savoie (NRCS), Todd Aschenbach (GVSU), Katie Carlisle (Huron County Metroparks, Brian Hintz, Andy Henriksen (NRCS), Sara Vaughn (GTCD), Lindsey Sculpholm (Oakland County Parks), Caleb Brink (Lenawee CD), Jack McGowan-Stinski (LSFC), Lee Osterland (retired, MDNR), Joel Campbell (SWMLC), Nia Becker (Dovetail Partners), Amy Frye (USDA NRCS Marquette), Mary Parr (PCCI), Kevin Butler, Dan Engle (Chickaming Land Trust), Steve Woods (MDNR).

Meeting Proceedings:

Moment of Silence:
Held for Craig Maier, who passed in November. Additional opportunities for memorials are below.

Craig Maier Tribute Page: (https://www.mykeeper.com/CraigMaier) - All are welcome and encouraged to provide Tribute, through stories photos, videos, art, poems, reflection on this actively engaging online platform.
Craig MaierGo Fund Me Appeal: (https://gofund.me/159ce8a5) - Thank you for considering donating and know that all funds raised will be provided in trust to and benefit for Craig’s young son – David.

Bylaws Review:

Reviewed Article III: A single language change was proposed.
Motion: Ben moved to approve; Jarod seconded. Motion passed unanimously.
Reviewed Article IV: Discussions on language consistency (“will,” “shall,” “must” to mean the same). Modernizing language in Section 3 was proposed. Jarod will revise and circulate for review. Approval deferred to the next meeting.
Managed Article III Section 8: Further discussion planned for the next in-person meeting at Burning Issues to determine who is considered “steering committee” vs “council member”

Education and Outreach Committee:

A new chair is needed as Tina stepped down. Responsibilities in the past have included:

Creating and distributing outreach programs and materials.
Organizing “Learn and Burn” events and guest speaker sessions.
Generating social media materials about prescribed fire in Michigan.

Forest to MI Faucet grant requires a small committee for stewardship.

Land Conservancy of West Michigan (LCWM) plans a Learn and Burn event at Saul Lake Bog Nature Preserve on April 12 or 19. LCWM will handle most coordination. Michele will attend as the MPFC representative.

Michele to coordinate with Steve and Mary and Steph on grant funding.
Motion by Stephanie and seconded by Graceanna to approve $500 via the Forest to Mi Faucet grant for LCWM event. Motion passed.

Burning Issues Conference Update:

Scheduled for February 4-5 at Camp Grayling with a hybrid format.
Registration fees: $45-$90 (students/professionals). Sponsorship options available.
Free billets provided, but attendees must bring their own supplies and clean up post-event.
Plans to honor Craig Maier formally at the event will be considered by the planning committee.

Training and Qualifications Committee:

Chair: Steve Woods (now at MDNR). Northern Michigan Collaborative and Fire Training MOU ongoing.
Exploring ideas for a successful burn week.
$11,000 allocated for equipment cache in MI Forest to Faucet.

Joel Campbell to assist with radio cloning.
Meeting planned with Jessica, Stephanie, Ryan, Michele, and Steve about equipment needs and cache storage.

Training Needs Poll: Update and distribute. Graceanna (DNR) collecting survey of training needs: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=h3D71Xc3rUKWaoku9HIl0eC7nwBhhlFCpimhktQtyF5UN1kzUEEwMTdJNDJaWlNZVlRTMFBGTk1QQy4u Tall Timbers recently did a survey of midwest states training needs, Steph will share results once they are out.

MPFC Financial Update FY25 Quarter 1
- Steph showed and discussed budget and current account standing. See images at end of this post.
Certified Prescribed Burn Manager (CPBM) Update:

Survey underway for training needs (suggestions made for S-130/S-190, S290, S-212 chainsaw, S-131, S-215 Engine Boss, CPBM course).
Discussion on reciprocity for bordering state qualifications.
Developing a board of peers for CPBM review.
2023 acreage data collection is ongoing; 2024 data will be needed. Proposed adding metrics like personnel engaged. The purpose of this survey is to collect prescribed burn information from across the landscape of Michigan to see how many acres were burned, how many burns were conducted and who is conducting burns across the state. Once the poll in complete (January 10th, 2025) Graceanna will send MPFC the stats to distribute and use as needed.
https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=h3D71Xc3rUKWaoku9HIl0eC7nwBhhlFCpimhktQtyF5UNkJOMTM3Q1k2R0JLSTlRTlBBSFNRWkEyWi4u
Annual statewide reports modeled after WPFC dashboard suggested for better data utilization.

Other Updates:

Southwest MI Fire Visioning Summit: Scheduled for January 15 at Kalamazoo Nature Center. Contact rkoziatek@naturecenter.org and sdiep@naturecenter.org for more info if you are interested and did not receive an email invite to RSVP.
Kalamazoo Nature Center plans to host a S130/190 field day in spring (open to public, scholarships will be available via KNC, more details to come).
Pyrodendrochronology Study: Collaboration with USFWS and Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa at Wilderness State Park. Efforts to expand fire use in the northern lower peninsula and UP.
Joel Campbell suggested outreach to KVCC/GRCC fire academies to engage in wildland fire initiatives.

New Business:

Need a MPFC Vice President for next year. Emphasis on organizational capacity over fire expertise. Main responsibility to lead quarterly meetings if President is unavailable.
Graceanna developing a photo fuel load guide; input from the Council invited.
Proposal for a Michigan/Lakes Region Prescribed Fire Guide to mirror the Southeast’s model. Focus on safe, ecologically, and culturally sensitive practices.

Adjournment:
Meeting concluded with a call to action for increasing participation and leadership within the Council.

Action Items:

Jarod: Revise and circulate Article IV language updates.
Michele: Attend LCWM Learn and Burn in April, coordinate grant funding with Steve and Mary and Steph.
Steve: Reinitiate T&Q meetings; finalize burn week and training logistics.
Graceanna: Update training needs poll, finalize photo fuel load guide.
All: Consider nominations for Vice President; Consider leading Public Outreach subcommittee; provide input on prescribed fire guide development

MPFC Financial Report FY25 Quarter 1