Response of Highly Valued Resources and Assets to Wildfire within Grand Teton National Park and the Bridger-Teton National Forest
Grand Teton National Park (GTNP) and the Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF) cover approximately 3.7 million acres within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The majority of this land base is fairly remote, much of it either designated Wilderness or roadless, and composed of fire-adapted ecosystems. To add complexity to the fire environment, this fire dependent landscape is adjacent to high profile investments like communities and oil and gas fields as well as home to candidate wildlife species whose habitat may be negatively impacted by fire.
In this challenging context, both units’ fire programs use the full range of fire management options – planned and unplanned ignitions, as well as mechanical treatments – to meet resource objectives. In light of the landscape’s accessibility, historic dependence on fire, and the potential values impacted by fire, the units’ fire management groups must be strategic in placing fuels treatments and in taking advantage of every opportunity to allow fire to play its natural role in the ecosystem. Optimizing the use of these tools requires first identifying the actual wildfire hazard across the landscape, then pinpointing the threats and benefits of fire.
