Okefenokee NWR Highlights Wildland Fire Cooperation
Staff members from both the House of Representatives and Senate, as well as senior officials from the Department of the Interior's fire management office and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Branch of Fire Management, gathered February 24 at Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, GA, to learn firsthand about wildland fire management as a cooperative venture.
Officials learned about the Greater Okefenokee Association of Landowners and the wildlife refuge's forestry and fire programs, highly successful ways that hazardous fuels and natural resources are managed on the refuge. The voluntary landowners association was formed in 1994 to manage, protect and promote forest resources in and around the Okefenokee Swamp. The association is one of the finest examples of cooperation among federal, state and local resources regarding fire management in and around the Okefenokee Swamp.
Officials heard briefings about the national wildlife refuge and the wildland fire management program and saw the program's benefits from the unique vantage point of a one-hour helicopter tour over the refuge.
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1936 to preserve the 438,000-acre Okefenokee Swamp. The wildlife refuge encompasses 396,000 acres. Of that, 353,981 are designated as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. About 33,000 acres are being restored to once-abundant longleaf pine and wiregrass habitats. Species of concern in the area include red-cockaded woodpeckers, gopher tortoises and indigo snakes. The refuge hosts more than 400,000 visitors annually.
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