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We at KNAU know that northern Arizona wildfire information is crucial to our listeners. This page is our comprehensive source for information about the 2015 wildfire season. Here you will find all the latest updates from area fire agencies and national forests as well as wildfire-oriented stories.For breaking news tips, call the KNAU newsroom at (928) 523-4912 or e-mail knaunews@nau.edu.

Forest Supervisors Sign Off on First Phase of 4FRI

USFS

Supervisors with the Coconino and Kaibab national forests have given final approval of the Four Forests Restoration Initiative, or 4FRI. As Arizona Public Radio’s Ryan Heinsius reports, officials say the program will restore forest health and decrease wildfire danger. 

Nearly 600,000 acres will be treated on the Coconino and Kaibab national forests as part of the first phase of 4FRI. Mechanical thinning and prescribed burns will take place across a majority of that area along with watershed restoration and animal habitat improvement.

Brienne Pettit is the public affairs officer for 4FRI.

“Signing this record of decision signifies progress. The whole goal of 4FRI is to increase the scale and pace of restoration efforts in the ponderosa pine of northern Arizona. There’s so much work to do that there’s no such thing as an end date,” Pettit says.

Credit USFS
Kaibab National Forest Supervisor Mike Williams (left) and Coconino National Forest Supervisor Earl Stewart sign off on the final record of decision for 4FRI's first environmental impact statement on April 17.

The first stage of 4FRI is expected to last through 2020. Eventually, nearly two-and-half-million acres will be treated across the Coconino, Kaibab, Apache-Sitgreaves and Tonto national forests.

To date, crews have treated about 300,000 acres. 

Ryan Heinsius was named interim news director and managing editor in January 2024. He joined KNAU's newsroom as an executive producer in 2013. He covers a broad range of stories from local, state and tribal politics to education, economy, energy and public lands issues, and frequently interviews internationally known and regional musicians. Ryan is an Edward R. Murrow Award winner and a Public Media Journalists Association Award winner, and a frequent contributor to NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered and national newscast.
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