State and county officials outline wildfire preparedness and new state resources for Benton County

Representatives from the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) and the Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM) told Benton County commissioners on May 2 that the county fared well in the most recent fire season but remains attentive to changing weather and staffing needs.

Michael Curran, district forester for ODFs West Oregon District, said Benton Countys 2022 fire season burned roughly 47 acres, well below the districts 10-year average. He noted the county saw two notable incidents: the Lucky Mutt fire (about 1 acre) and the Norton East fire (about 18 acres). Curran also reviewed state forest management: board of forestry lands in Benton County total about 8,300 acres while common school fund lands total about 553 acres; the district expects harvest volumes to fall from roughly 119to 12,000,000 board feet down to about 99to 10,000,000 board feet under the updated implementation plan.

Brent Griffiths, regional mobilization coordinator with OSFM assigned to Benton County, explained new options made available by the 2021 legislative package (Senate Bill 762). "Under Senate Bill 762, it's where we're able to provide resources from outside the county to an incident without having to enact the conflagration act," he said, describing the "immediate response" authority that allows the state to send and pay for outside resources to keep incidents small. Griffiths also summarized grant programs that will expand local capacity: a seasonal upstaffing grant (statewide funds prioritized for smaller departments), a multi-year grant to help agencies hire full-time staff (with a phased local match), and allocations of wildland apparatus (Benton County allocations include a Type 3 engine for Monroe and a Type 6/brush truck for Corvallis/Corrales).

County commissioners asked about sustaining grant-funded positions and outreach to private landowners. ODF and local wildfire foresters described a strategy of seeking multi-year grant commitments and growing stewardship-forester capacity to support outreach, fuels reduction projects and inspections of industrial operations. Commissioners praised mutual-aid responses during local fires and encouraged continued coordination among county, state and volunteer fire agencies.

Next steps: agencies will continue coordination, execute planned apparatus deliveries, and seek funding to sustain grant-funded staff roles and outreach programs.