Meet our Guests: Frazier Haney

Frazier Haney

Executive Director, The Wildlands Conservancy

Sand to Snow National Monument, CA

11/13/2021

Frazier Haney, executive director of The Wildlands Conservancy, works hard to protect wild lands. When the land outside Joshua Tree National Park was threatened with development they started “the campaign to fire people up” to fight a proposed wind energy project. Getting community members on board with preserving the local wilderness is a major part of Frazier’s advocacy. When talking about protecting wild lands, he proudly produced three thick reams of paper, bearing signatures against the wind farm on Black Lava Butte.  Frazier asserts, “you can’t stop a development based on beauty. But you can inspire people with beauty.” There is tension between preservation and developing green energy. While we need to transition away from carbon-based energy, he believes the place to build renewable energy technology is in already developed places. This could mean solar panels on top of buildings, or wind energy remade in derelict wind farm sites.

The Wildlands Conservancy acquires private land that may be developed near and between current wild areas. This is important because it allows animals to utilize larger ranges of land and migrate between different areas. Continuous undeveloped land is necessary for biodiversity and species longevity.  Frazier says of the Sand to Snow National Monument, “it’s a beautiful place. And I think that’s enough reason to save a place.”

By Reya Fore

Meet our Guests: Matt Howard

Matt Howard

Fire Manager, Oregon Department of Forestry

Wallowa County, OR

8/24/2021

Standing in the hot sun on a bed of dry pine needles, Matt Howard, Fire Manager with the Oregon Department of Forestry, emphasizes that this place, the Lostine Canyon in northeastern Oregon, is only accessible by a one-lane road. The nature of the road and its users means that a wildfire evacuation would be difficult and slow. Traffic could create a bottleneck at the bridge and block emergency vehicles. Matt describes that thinning the forest around the road by cutting small diameter trees would give firefighters a chance to hold back a blaze during an evacuation.

Working with homeowners in the area, Matt educates on fire preparedness. About half of the residents in Lostine Canyon participate in the Firewise Community program which involves creating a “defensible space” without burnable debris around their homes so that wildfire or flying embers do not ignite the building as easily. Why don’t more people take action to protect their (and their neighbors’) homes? Matt explains in a resigned tone that people just do not think fire will come to them. He also mentions that it is hard to get second homeowners to care for a property they only visit one or two weeks in a year. Matt speaks from experience when he says “I can educate, I can regulate, but people aren’t going to do things unless they believe in them.”

Matt loves these woods, and understands why people would risk living here. Even considering the persistence of fire in the area, Matt believes that “people can live here and be safe…knowing there’s inherent risk.”

By Reya Fore