Measure seeks to strengthen firefighting efforts for federal weather service

U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) recently introduced a bill that seeks to enhance federal weather service firefighting efforts.

The Fire Ready Nation Act of 2022 would create a fire weather services program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), authorizing engagement in wildfire response activities and providing funding for science and technologies to forecast weather conditions causing and spreading wildfires.

“Washington state wildfires are growing more severe, burning hundreds of thousands of acres and threatening lives and property every year,” Cantwell, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, said. “With the 2022 fire season right around the corner, we need to maximize every tool available to prevent, track and fight wildfires. This bill will help our federal weather tracking agency — NOAA — deploy new technology that will boost computing power to improve wildfire forecasting and identify the impacts of changing weather conditions.”

Cantwell said the initiative would also test a new drone pilot program designed to gather critical fire information and survey post-fire damage without endangering the lives of a pilot or crew members while ensuring NOAA has resources to support the nation’s forecasters serving alongside wildfire response teams.

“As wildfires have repeatedly ravaged the West, we need to ensure that adequate tools are available to forecast, track, and respond to disasters,” Sullivan said. “This bill supports and enhances the existing mission while filling unmet operational needs, increasing collaboration with international partners, and identifying needed improvements to our forecasting systems.”