In the very grand scheme of things, I think that what will come of this will be a policy of wildland firefighters being encouraged to let houses burn along WUI margins more often. I think this policy will be very unpopular. My hope is that local communities will take it upon themselves to fund and maintain Firesafe standards, which will require thinning and pruning forested areas adjacent to them. I also hope to see less fear of prescribed burning. I want to see both a broader understanding of fire-dependent ecologies and a greater willingness to be proactive about local assets' safety. I want to see communities empowered to be less dependent on state and federal agencies for their own well-being. This argument could seem to be contrary to the discussion regarding "why does Prescott have a Hotshot crew, anyway?" It's not, though -- a Hotshot crew is a nationally-deployable asset which has no business milling around a single town. Prescott would have been better off spending that same money (I realize that it wouldn't be the SAME "same" money) on thinning and RX burning fire-prone areas in their own back yards.
Meanwhile, closer to home, I do definitely have some things I'd rather not speak about publicly. Once the fire season is over and the dust has settled, I'll see if I can't summarize our Lessons Learned.
