Wildland Fire Science Needs in Oregon and Washington: Local and regional research availability, applications, and gaps

The Northwest Fire Science Consortium (Consortium) works to accelerate the awareness, understanding, and adoption of wildland fire science by connecting users in the Pacific Northwest with the most useful resources available. These efforts require an ongoing understanding of how users access wildland fire science, the challenges and opportunities that they experience in using different types of research, and topics where more information is needed. Previous research, including a prior assessment by the Consortium in 2011,1 has highlighted the importance of local or regionally-relevant information among fire science users. In this assessment, conducted in 2018, we sought to update the needs assessment conducted in 2011 while investigating topics where local research was most needed. The specific objectives were to:1.Characterize wildland fire science use among Consortium users;2.Understand Consortium users’ perspectives about applying local and nonlocal research in their work;3.Identify the place-specific research needs of Consortium users;4.Develop recommendations to help guide the Consortium in outreach efforts. We conducted interviews (n=20) with key wildland fire managers and stakeholders, and surveyed a broader audience (n=167) of Consortium users. Participants in both efforts worked primarily in Washington or Oregon and represented a range of disciplines, positions, and agencies or organizations, all engaged in wildland fire.