The 100th board of directors meeting of the Oregon Forest Protective Association, May 14,
at the Crew House on the compound of Coos Forest Protective Association, Coos Bay.

via OFRI: 100 years of fire protection

For Mike Dykzeul, the records from the early days of cooperative fire protection are more than history, they are a state treasure.

As director of forest protection for the Oregon Forest Industries Council, Dykzeul inherited a trove of historical documents from the beginnings of mutual benefit and cost sharing for forest fire fighting. What impresses him more than anything is not so much their age as their continuing relevance.

“Those documents from 100 years ago read like they could have been written today,” Dykzeul says. “Their vision was so insightful and basic to success, that we continue dealing with the same problems they identified: fuels management, funding, personal responsibility, risks from neighbors’ management and public behavior.”

Remarkable also is the legacy of cooperation those pioneers of forest protection left behind. It’s a spirit and respect that continues today, says Dykzeul, as local forest protective associations and OFIC mark the centennial of the founding of the Oregon Forest Fire Association.

In forming the OFFA, which later became the Oregon Forest Protective Association, forest landowners recognized their interdependence as well as the benefits of sharing fire-prevention and fire-fighting resources. Gradually, the Oregon Department of Forestry developed its fire-management capacities and took the lead. But Oregon’s fire program retained a high degree of cooperation and participation between state and private forest landowners, including sharing program and suppression costs.

“That’s the beauty of Oregon’s system,” Dykzeul says. “There is still a higher level of landowner involvement in fire suppression, planning and prevention than in any other Western state. It’s all for one, one for all, and Oregon’s very proud of that.”

As he looks to the future, Dykzeul is mindful of the past. “It’s important to recognize 100 years of cooperative fire protection that has survived and adapted,” he says. “We’re doing everything we can to make sure heritage and success move into the next 100 years.”

Photo:
Front row (L-R) Eric Kranzush, Giustina Land & Timber, president Linn FPA;, Paul Wagner, Giustina Resources, president East Lane FPA; Milt Moran, Cascade Timber Consultants, board chairman, Bill Swarts, Cascade Timberlands, president, Klamath FPA;
Second row (L-R) Dan Fink, Longview Timber Co., president Clackamas-Marion FPA; Jim Carr, Menasha Forest Products, president, Coos FPA; Lew Howe,– Silver Butte Timber Company, president Douglas FPA; Mike Tucker, Giustina Land & Timber, president West Lane FPA;
Back row (L-R) Roger VanDyke, Stimson Lumber Company, president Northwest Oregon FPA; Jerry Anderson, Forest Capital Partners, president, West Oregon FPA; Mike Dykzeu, OFIC, OFPA manager; Lon Casebeer,  JW-TR LLC, president, Rogue FPA.
Not shown: Ron Sommerfeld, president Walker Range FPA; John Warness, Forest Capital Partners, president, East Oregon FPA.