Agenda Item Name:
Title
Execute Memorandum of Understanding for the North Central Florida Prescribed Fire Working Group
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Presenter:
Sandra Vardaman, 264-6803
Description:
Request BoCC execute the third renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding for the North Central Florida Prescribed Fire Working Group (MoU). This agreement allows Alachua County to receive and provide prescribed burning assistance and resources to increase the prescribed fire management capacity of all signatories to the MoU.
Recommended Action:
Recommended Action
Execute the Memorandum of Understanding for the North Central Florida Prescribed Fire Working Group
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Prior Board Motions:
February 28, 2012, BoCC approved execution the Memorandum of Understanding for the North Central Florida Prescribed Fire Working Group.
Fiscal Consideration:
Fiscal Consideration
No costs are anticipated as a result of this agreement because use of County staff and equipment will be off-set by the reciprocal use of outside staff and equipment on county-owned lands to our benefit. The intent of the MoU is to leverage the capacity of the partner agencies.
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Background:
The use of prescribed fire reduces the frequency and intensity of wildfires by reducing the buildup of hazardous fuels, thus saving money in the form of suppression costs, property damage, and most importantly, saving lives. Additionally prescribed burning is one of the most cost effective resource management and restoration tools available to land managers today.
The Memorandum of Understanding for the North Central Florida Prescribed Fire Working Group updates two previous versions of the MoU that were approved by the County Manager and the BoCC on June 27th, 2005 and February 28th, 2012 respectively. The MoU re-authorizes the North Central Florida Prescribed Fire Working Group (NCF-RxFWG), a cooperative effort among public and private agencies and organizations with the intention to accomplish prescribed fire objectives on public and private lands, improve fire training and education opportunities, and promote public understanding and the acceptance of prescribed fire in the North-Central Florida area. In many instances a prescribed burning program will be limited by personnel, equipment or local weather. This cooperative effort will unite skills, tools and abilities so the combined burning accomplished by the N/CFL-PFWG will exceed what the respective agencies and entities could accomplish independently.
Under this agreement, the members of the N/CFL-PFWG agree to provide staffing and equipment to assist with prescribed fires on member’s lands, cooperate with fire training and educational opportunities, and to promote public understanding and acceptance of prescribed fire in the north central Florida region. This MoU also provides for the sharing of information and assistance concerning land management and ecosystem restoration techniques. Assistance will be provided as allowed by programmatic priorities.